Get Chartered – professional experience

Competence and Commitment

report guidance
Section B: evidence that you have the
ability to handle the wider implications
of your work as an engineer
Demonstrate your awareness of the safety, environmental and commercial implications of your work. Developing
awareness does not mean that you need expert experience working as a safety engineer, environmental
consultant or project manager – these issues should be inherent in the work of any chemical engineer.

Bi Ability to handle health, hazard and safety aspects:

to apply appropriate principles, good practice, meet
legislative requirements etc.
Give direct examples that describe your contribution to ensuring safety and health in process operations (which
may include laboratories). This section is a critical requirement for successful application for Chartered Chemical
Engineer status.

Examples:
Q participating in a Hazard and Operability (HAZOP) study
Q auditing safety compliance of a pilot plant used for teaching in a university
Q designing or evaluating pressure relief, emergency flare and fire-fighting systems
Q carrying out an investigation into a boiler explosion

You might write:

I prepared a safe working procedure (SWP) for an unusual maintenance task...

Bii Ability to handle sustainability aspects: these could include

environmental, public concern and other societal issues,
recognition of risks etc.
Demonstrate your understanding of how operations may have an environmental or societal impact and show how
you incorporate recognition and remediation of these risks into your work.

Examples:
Q investigating the bio-remediation of contaminated soil
Q preparing environmental impact assessment documents for a solvent plant
Q implementing and monitoring an ISO14000 environmental management system at an oil refinery
Q analysis and investigation of ways of reducing energy use

You might write:

I ensured that plant emissions controls complied with best available technology...
 Get Chartered – professional experience

Biii Ability to handle commercial and economic aspects

Show how you have contributed, as an engineer, to commercial decisions.

Examples:
Q devising a spreadsheet to optimise refinery product mix schedules based on market price data
Q estimating capital and operating costs for alternative designs
Q carrying out an insurance risk assessment for a novel manufacturing process
Q assessing the cost implication of loss of yield versus shut down costs for cleaning

You might write:

I set out the cost and non-cost implications of introducing a further production line on site...

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Get Chartered – professional experience

Competence and Commitment report –

past examples
Section Bi

–
Example 1

I attended a HAZOP for a new inlet works at a wastewater treatment works as an observer to
gain experience. I then participated in two HAZOPs and the associated “Access, Lifting and
Maintenance Reviews” for XXXX and XXXX projects described in questions Aii and Aiv.

LY
For the pilot plants at XXXX and XXXX described in questions Aiv and Av, I was responsible
for producing risk assessments for the installation and operation of the pilot plants for use by
contractors and process scientists, and ensuring H&S procedures were followed such as COSHH

T C ON
procedures, the use of access certificates and site inductions.
I have arranged site visits for design teams, graduate engineers and work experience students
and was responsible for using risk assessments to identify any onsite hazards, ensuring
participants were properly inducted and had the appropriate personal protective equipment.

Y
I have received a range of H&S training to enable me to safely carry out my role as a process

NO CE
engineer (see CPD report for more details). The IOSH Managing Safety course gave me an

OP
understanding of health and safety law, accident causation and prevention, risk management
and behavioural science.
Through training on the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 (CDM)
N
I understand my responsibilities as a Designer and apply them in my everyday work. These
are to identify hazards early on in the design process, eliminate and reduce hazards as far as
RE

reasonably practical and provide adequate information about any risks associated with the
design.
For example when designing a chemical phosphorous removal system at XXXX I specified
FE

ferric sulphate rather than ferric chloride, as ferric sulphate causes less corrosion and so it safer
to store. I also checked that the appropriate bunding of the chemical storage area had been
included in the project scope.
RE

A technologist at an oil refinery, I carry out formal safe audits and field observations and suggest
Example 2

improvements to plant procedures and work methods. One such recommendation was for
DO

access and directions to an emergency safe haven in a plant area to be improved.

As A process engineer with an EPC contractor, I evaluated the safety implications of increased
throughput on an offshore oil production facility operated by an IOC. The increased throughput
was from processing fully stabilized crude oil from an adjacent field in addition to plans to
increase recovery at the local field. Specifically, I modelled the production system hydraulics
(with the aid of specialist software) to investigate the impact of liquid surge (during emergency
shutdown) on existing relief capacity and pipeline design pressures. The scenarios studied
incorporated different production profiles, pipeline configurations and valve operation modes
during emergency shutdown. My findings, which were accepted by the client, showed that
the existing relief tank capacity and pipeline design pressures were satisfactory for the planned
service.
As a process engineer with an EPC contractor, I was part of a team of process engineers that
undertook a flare and blowdown review of process installations in an oil field offshore Denmark.
Specifically, I identified blowdown blocks around process equipment containing significant
inventory from P&IDs and modelled gas blowdown using the depressurization utility module of
the HYSYS software. This was for fire and non-fire cases. I assessed if depressurization to the
lower of 100psig or 50% of the system pressure could be achieved in 15 minutes, as stipulated
by API521. Based on the above findings, I made recommendations to the client vis-à-vis the re-
sizing of non-compliant relief orifices.
Get Chartered – professional experience

Section Bi

Example 3
I am the EHS Advisor/Safety Engineer in the hazardous area committee for reviewing

–
hazardous area assessments whenever there is a change to process materials, process,
operating conditions and when a new equipment is brought into a hazardous area. I am the
co-author of the current site hazardous area procedure.

LY
My role involves leading HAZOPs. I have attended the IChemE HAZOP Leadership and
Management course as a development opportunity.

T C ON
I review ‘Permit to Work’ issued to ensure it is being filled out correctly and it is used
appropriately.
I have recently completed and graduated with a Diploma in the National Examination Board of
Safety and Health.

Y
I provide advice to site to ensure that legislative requirements and good EHS practices are in

NO CE
OP
place across site.I provide authoritative EHS advice to multi-disciplinary project teams dealing
with site or area EHS development issues taking account of statutory and corporate
requirements and site business objectives

N
I promote and monitor to the highest levels of EHS performance in line with statutory and
corporate requirements.
RE
Example 4

I raise and approve permits to work for contractors completing engineering and building work
on site, including review of method statements and risk assessments. Specific risks within the
FE

site are considered, both in terms of task safety (e.g. we use large volumes of alcohols in some
products and work in this area must take into account ignition risks from tools and equipment
as well as more obvious “hot work”) and in terms of customer safety via product quality (e.g.
management of dust creation, air movement, potential product contamination).
RE

I have managed improvement and upgrade works within hazardous zoned areas, including
review of the required ATEX zoning within the area (moving from previous over specified
DO

blanket zoning to more pragmatic approach) plus review of electrical and mechanical
equipment suitability.
During design stage for a new batch production process to be implemented on existing
equipment, I took a lead role in the HAZOP for the project. Through my knowledge of the
existing plant that the new process would be implemented on, the team proposed several
safety interlock devices to improve the operational safety of the production team who would
be manufacturing the product.
I regularly support preparation for audits by HSE, MHRA and other regulatory bodies with
safety, environmental or GMP focus, and must ensure that both the projects I implement and
the documentation I produce meets the relevant requirements, e.g. PUWER assessments and
IQ/OQ documentation.

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Get Chartered – professional experience

Competence and Commitment report –

past examples
Section Bii

–
Example 1

I contributed to the development of the company carbon estimating calculation tool to

determine the green house gas emissions associated with building and operating treatment
processes. This information is required when comparing project options and for reporting to the

LY
water industry regulator OFWAT.
I was tasked with producing embodied carbon estimating curves for a range of treatment
processes. For example for primary settlement tanks I worked with estimators to calculate what

T C ON
raw materials and energy would be required to install a range of tank sizes. The green house
gas production could then be calculated and I worked out a correlation between the kg CO2
equivalent produced and the size of tank. This relationship was then included in the company
estimating tool.

Y
The water treatment processes I design must achieve the correct drinking water standards to

NO CE
protect public health. For example at XXXX I designed the refurbishment of sand filters with

OP
activated carbon media to remove taste and odour to prevent customer complaints.
For wastewater treatment I ensure the site will meet environmental discharge consents. For
example at XXXX I ensured the final effluent met an ammonia consent to prevent harm to aquatic
N
life in the receiving water course.
On all projects I work closely with colleagues from the Environment and Sustainability team
RE

which help the design team consider third party issues such as planning applications, habitats,
noise, odour, visual impact and traffic movements for different process options.
Whilst on the graduate training scheme I worked in the Regulation Team for six months. I was
responsible for formal correspondence with the Environment Agency when the company’s
FE

actions may have caused a pollution incident, or if a treatment works failed a discharge consent.
I contributed to corporate social responsibility when I had a one month placement with the
charity XXX which helps small businesses reduce their environmental impact. I investigated
RE

the benefits of my companies relationship with this charity and made recommendations for the
future funding arrangement.
DO

In my time working at a UK refinery, I was responsible for front-end development of a project

Example 2

to comply with an environment agency (EA) improvement condition as part of the pollution,
prevention and control (PPC) permit. Here, I investigated options to reduce SOx emissions by
ending the burning of a sour water stripper (SWS) off-gas stream in a plant subject to the large
combustion plant directive (LCPD) and process the off-gas in the sulphur recovery unit (SRU).
The options I developed (using design data, specialist support and industry software) were to:
(1) transfer the sour gas via a steam jacketed pipeline to the SRU, (2) To decommission the sour
water stripper (SWS) and install a new SWS by the SRU, (3) decommission the SWS and send
sour water to the other SWS on site, from which off-gas is sent to the SRU.
Based on the aforementioned technical evaluations, safety considerations and cost data,
I was able to convince management to support option 3. Subsequently, I worked with the
environment manager to communicate our plans to the EA.
Get Chartered – professional experience

Section Bii

As the site safety engineer, I lead site issues alongside other staff and engineers on site to

Example 3

–
establish and minimise risks by using methods such as FMEA (Failure Mode Effects Analysis),
general risk assessments, SIL (Safety Integrity Level) assessments on equipment and processes.

LY
I ensure project engineers/managers purchase equipment with low noise levels, as the EHS rep
on the project teams.
For the re-design of a process plant, I was involved with investigating the impact of any change

T C ON
to the emission of reaction vessel to atmosphere during a HAZOP. It was established that an
outlet pressure relief valve got removed, but there was no overall change in emissions. The
Environment Adviser reported the change to the Environment Agency (EA) and the EA was
agreed that no change was required to the permit.

Y
As the EHS advisor on projects, I ask and ensure that work equipment and production lines

NO CE
have a switch off option when not in use to ensure that minimum amount of energy is used.

OP
I have mentored 2 work experience students, who were interested in studying chemical
engineering. At the end of their placements, their feedback were very positive.

N
I investigated a batch process as there was concern from routine product stability testing that
Example 4

there may be some active ingredient segregation which could not only affect product quality
RE
and efficacy (due to low active ingredient content in some bottles) but customer safety (as
by definition some bottles may have higher content), hence a problem of high importance as
regards public health. I completed a detailed review of variability within the manufacturing
process, and a risk assessment regarding the potential level of active ingredient that could be
FE

found in a bottle and form that in a dose to a patient. I then implemented improved control of
the product handling between processing and packaging, as the highest risk areas were found
to be segregation and flocculation within un-stirred storage IBCs.
I have assisted in the updating of IPPC permit applications for the production areas which I
RE

have had operational responsibility for, including basic estimation of VOC emissions from the
plant through material displacement.
DO

After assessment of the potential environmental risks from a manufacturing process involving
surfactant and biocide raw materials, I specified and installed a new captive drain, and product
spill limitation barriers, for one of our liquids production areas.
During my student industrial placement, I completed a monitoring study of the gas scrubber
for the manufacturing facility to confirm that the system was operating effectively, and
recommended alterations to the operational settings of the system to reduce the sulphur
dioxide emissions from the top of the scrubber stack.

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Get Chartered – professional experience

Competence and Commitment report –

past examples
Section Biii

–
Example 1

I have contributed to the development of the company’s cost estimating tool by producing cost
breakdowns of past projects. This involved attributing costs for projects to specific scope items.
These costs were then used to calibrate the cost estimating curves.

LY
Every five years water companies must apply to the financial regulator OFWAT to decide what
the company can charge customers in order to fund improvements and maintenance to drinking
water and wastewater assets. I completed designs for improvements to water treatment works

T C ON
which fed into the capital investment plans for the regulatory submission. The designs had to
meet our drinking water quality obligations whilst being low in cost to ensure good value for
customers. I was involved in meetings where the project scopes were challenged in order to
drive down costs.

Y
I have worked on external contracts where my company has bid for a contract to deliver projects

NO CE
for other water companies. On the XXXX bid I was responsible for developing the design briefs

OP
into a scope list which the estimating team could value for the bid. I checked the costs for
consistency across projects and checked for ways to save money across the programme.
Whilst on the graduate training scheme I worked for six months in the contract team and was
N
responsible for the collation of financial information for management reviews to approve the
budget for major projects. This included costs during the whole life of a project including design,
site set up, surveys, construction, and commissioning. Once projects were approved and in
RE

construction I logged early warnings of delays and overspends reported by our construction
partners. I communicated this information to project managers so they could take the necessary
action.
FE

In my role as a project development technologist, all projects that I work on require detailed
Example 2

economic analysis to prove justification. I use company-approved methods to calculate

value investment ratios and discounted cash flows over the project’s life-cycle. For example,
RE

on a £14M bitumen storage and export project, for which I was responsible for front-end
development, I performed cost-benefits analysis to aid option selection. This was achieved by
DO

comparing the required capital expenditure with the economic benefits that accrue based on
the different operational and supply strategies for single and multiple tank options. I wrote an
investment proposal which helped to obtain management endorsement and secure funding for
my recommended option.
Get Chartered – professional experience

Section Biii

During a secondment opportunity, I was involved in management of project resources, looking

Example 3

–
at modelled versus actual information to support exploratory development of drugs and help
in process/ business development using excel and MS Projects. I was involved in looking into
budgets, people and projects and planning in advance for these.

LY
As the lead EHS adviser for capital projects for the site, I work with project engineers and
project managers to provide them with technical advice, but taking into account the financial
aspects to ensure their projects are completed safely, on time and at the least possible costs.

T C ON
I have completed several detailed capital expenditure justifications and requests including for
Example 4

bulk raw material storage - comparison of COGs (cost of goods) impact of bulk delivery vs.
delivery in drums; comparison of operator time ref manual handling, weighing and loading

Y
of materials vs. tanker offload and flowmeter addition by time-and-motion study; comparison

NO CE
of operating costs for large ovens to heat the drummed product vs. heating jackets and trace

OP
heated lines.
I have compiled a variety of cost estimates for incorporation into capital planning, including
equipment-based projects such as standalone production suites, expansion of existing

N
processing systems, and smaller plant modifications; and labour-based or service-based
projects such as improvements and replacements of control software and relocation of existing
RE
processing equipment.
I have tendered significant projects to equipment and control software suppliers, such as the
provision of a new liquid storage and transfer system. This included:
FE

Q Identification of suppliers with suitable skill set and fabrication capabilities to provide
the equipment to our desired standard.
Q Detailed comparison of the tender responses to identify the reasons behind cost
differences between the two favoured suppliers, who had very different tender sums,
RE

in case of a misunderstanding or incorrect specification.

DO

Q Full review of the overall implementation risk of each supplier. The project included
a high level of integration with existing control systems and software, and the risk to
continued production in other areas of the plant from poor implementation of this
element was very high. This resulted in my splitting the work awarding the controls
element to a supplier with higher costs but a strong track record for previous projects
on the site, in order to ensure that the overall commercial risk was reduced.
Q Negotiation with the new (unproven) supplier selected for the remaining works for
more favourable payment terms and guarantees, to reduce financial risk should they
turn out to be unable to provide the required solution within timeframe and to the
required standard of installation.

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