Competency matters
April 1st 2007

Competency is a concept that is often misunderstood, but current regulatory requirements mean that the importance of a formalised competence management scheme should not be underestimated. Dave Anderson of Pilz Automation Technology comments on 'competence' in the context of machinery safety

To meet the demands of the evolving standards and the needs of the regulatory authorities, companies and company personnel must be able to demonstrate the competencies required to do the tasks expected of them.

Although this article focuses on the field of machinery safety, it is important to note that the wide-reaching health and safety at work Framework Directive (89/391/EEC) amends the existing provisions of the General Applications Regulations. The current European legislation defines a competent person in relation to protective and preventative services as follows: "For the purposes of the relevant statutory provisions, a person shall be deemed to be competent where, having regard to the task he or she is required to perform, and taking account of the size or the hazards (or either of them) of the undertaking or establishment in which he or she undertakes work, he or she possesses sufficient training, experience and knowledge appropriate to the nature of the work to be undertaken." Competence is therefore a combination of training, experience and knowledge – and not any of these in isolation. Another way to look at competencies is as task-related competencies (such as technical skills and knowledge) and function-related competencies (such as behavioural skills and an ability to work with others at all levels).

Because of the importance of competence, it must be demonstrable and not just claimed. In addition, the question of whether or not somebody is competent to perform a particular role is not a simple yes or no. In the scheme used by Pilz, there are three levels that can be achieved: knowledgeable, proficient and advanced.

At the knowledgeable level, the engineer will be able to demonstrate knowledge of the particular competence and an understanding of how the competence is used in the workplace, but the engineer will be working under supervision.

If the engineer's competence is assessed as 'proficient', generally he or she can demonstrate a sound level of understanding of the required competence, experience (such as by records, courses or projects), and the engineer will have the confidence to work unsupervised.

To have a competence assessed as 'advanced', the engineer must be able to demonstrate a thorough understanding of the competence, will be capable of performing the competency fully and independently, and can act as an advisor, supervisor or trainer.

Each engineer has a competency profile that is tailored to suit the tasks required of him or her, and the objective is to build up the individual's competences to match the profile.

But competence is not only measurable at the level of individuals; departments and entire companies can have their competence assessed on the basis of the combined competence of the individuals, plus the competence of managers and other staff.

Pilz has established a competency scheme for its national and international subsidiary companies that offer safety-related services. The scheme is based on the supporting documentation for competence within IEC 61508 of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

The management structure for the scheme is defined at both an international and national level. Responsibilities for the international management team include looking to the future for changes in regulations or standards that would affect the scheme, putting in place appropriate training courses for Pilz personnel, and auditing all national schemes and assessments. The actions of this management team are externally audited. The national management's role is to review and audit the assessments, local documents and action plans to ensure the continuing personal development of its staff.

With this robust scheme in place, Pilz has gained accreditation for Functional Safety Management within IEC 61508 (Functional safety of electrical/electronic/programmable electronic safety related systems) from UKAS and DAR, and Pilz is an accredited Type C inspection body under ISO/IEC 17020 (General criteria for the operation of various types of bodies performing inspection) from DATech GmbH.

Clearly it is not a simple matter to draw up and implement a competency scheme from scratch. However, having successfully completed its own scheme and assisted other companies to implement theirs, Pilz is in a strong position to help organisations as much or as little as required in the creation of new schemes. This can remove the uncertainty associated with introducing a concept that is still new to many people, as well as allowing a competency scheme to be implemented with as little input from company personnel as possible, should resources be limited.

Alternatively, Pilz can take a hands-off approach, leaving the company to carry out almost all of the work, but under the watchful eye of a Pilz consultant.

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