Legal requirements

Depending on the country in which the plant location is intended to be, more or less extensive legal requirements will exist regarding permission, implementation, operation and control of a process plant Since these requirements may be very far-reaching, they affect the considerations on the choice of the location. Two kinds of requirements play a special role and entail corresponding costs. They will therefore be briefly discussed. 

Depending on the corporate philosophy, the requirements of the own company specification voluntarily exceed even the legal regulations. On the other hand, in a globalized economy companies are exposed to enormous price pressures. It is obvious that plants operated in countries without or with minor environmental legislation dispose of a competitive advantage. The solution to this problem 

Section 2(3) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 requires employers, with more than four employees, to 

This obligation on employers was introduced for the first time by the HSW Act and is related to the reliance in the Act on self-regulation by employers to improve health and safety standards rather than on enforcement alone. A good health and safety policy involves the development, monitoring and review of the standards needed to address and reduce the risks to health and safety produced by the organization. 

The law requires that the written health and safety policy should entail  

When an inspector visits a premises, it is very likely that they will wish to see the health and safety policy as an initial indication of the management attitude to health and safety. There have been instances of prosecutions being made due to the absence of a written health and safety policy. (Such cases are, however, usually brought before the courts because of additional concerns.) 

The principal legislation in the UK affecting the use of ionising radiations in industry is summarised briefly below. However, readers should consult the appropriate documents for full details. 

The Regulahons require that employers imdertake a suitable and sufficient prior risk assessment before commencing achvihes involving work with ionising radiahon. The purpose of this assessment is to idenhfy the measures necessary to restrict the exposure of employees and other persons. The assessment must consider both normal operahons and potenhal radiation accidents. 

To facilitate the control of doses to persons, the Regulations specify criteria for designating areas as controlled or supervised areas. The imderlying basis of designation is a combination of likely doses and the need for either special work procedures or radiological supervision. 

Employers are required to designate as classified workers those of his employees who are likely to receive an effective dose in excess of 6mSv per year or an equivalent dose which exceeds three-tenths of any relevant dose limit. Only employees aged 18 years or over who have been certified as fit to be designated as a classified person can be so designated. Employees or other persons are only permitted to enter a controlled area if they are classified or enter in accordance with suitable written arrangements. In the case of the latter the employer must be able to justify nonclassification of the workers involved. 

The Radiation Protection Adviser (RPA) is a key figure in the Regulations. His function is to advise the employer as to the observance of these Regulations. He should, for example, be consulted about risk assessments, restricting the exposure of workers, the identification of controlled and 

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Water separated from oil usually contains small amounts of oil which have to be removed before the water can be released to the environment. Specifications are getting tighter but standards ranging from 10-100 ppm (parts per million) oil in wafer before disposal are currently common. In most areas 40 ppm of oil in water is the legal requirement, i.e. 40 mg / litre. 

The printed pubHshed document which represents the patent rights granted by the Federal Government can be a complex Hterary work. There are specific and rigid legal requirements for the description, disclosure, and definiteness which support these affirmative rights and enable enforcement of those rights by the inventor or owner of the patent. The basis for this fiiU and complete disclosure of the invention in the patent is clearly articulated in the U.S. Constitution. 

Financial accountancy is concerned with stewardship. This involves the preparation of balance sheets and income statements that represent the interest of stockholders and are consistent with existing legal requirements. Taxation is an important element of financial accounting. 

Code Administration The American Society of Mechanical Engineers has written the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code, which contains rirles for the design, fabrication, and inspection of boilers and pressure vessels. The ASME Code is an American National Standard. Most states in the United States and all Canadian provinces have passed legislation which makes the ASME Code or certain parts of it their legal requirement. Orrly a few jurisdictions have adopted the code for all vessels. The others apply it to certain types of vessels or to boilers. States employ inspectors (usually under a chief boiler inspector) to enforce code provisions. The authorities also depend a great deal on insurance company inspectors to see that boilers and pressure vessels are maintained in a safe condition. 

A new edition of the code is issued every 3 years. Between editions, alterations are handled by issuing semiannual addenda, which may be purchased by subscription. The ASME considers any issue of the code to be adequate and safe, but some government authorities specify certain issues of the code as their legal requirement. 

Inspection Authority The National Board of Boiler and Pressure Vessel Inspectors is composed of the chief inspectors of states and municipalities in the United States and Canadian provinces which have made any pari of the Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code a legal requirement. This board promotes uniform enforcement of boiler and pressure-vessel rules. One of the board s imporiant activities is providing examinations for, and commissioning of, inspectors. Inspeciors so qualified and employed by an insurance company state, municipality, or Canadian province may inspect a pressure vessel and permit it to be stamped ASME—NB (National Board). An inspector employed by a vessel user may authorize the use of only the ASME stamp. The ASME Code Committee authorizes fabricators to use the various ASME stamps. The stamps, however, may be apphed to a vessel only with the approval of the inspector. 

Measurements of the concentrations and characteristics of dust dispersed in air or other gases may be necessary (1) to determine the need for control measures, (2) to establish compliance with legal requirements, (3) to obtain information for collector design, and (4) to determine collec tor performance. 

B) Any contamination of the environment or damage to natural resources at a facility owned or operated hy Seller or a facility/location chosen hy Seller for its disposal of Wastes or any other facility at which Seller s Wastes may he released or threatened to he released, including any liability imposed by federal, state and local laws, regulations and ordinances, including, but not limited to, the Federal Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA), 42 USC 9601 etseq., the Federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), 42 USC 6901 et seq., or comparable and applicable state legal requirements or any extension or revision thereof or... 

The information obtained during the background search and from the source inspection will enable selection of the test procedure to be used. The choice will be based on the answers to several questions (1) What are the legal requirements For specific sources there may be only one acceptable method. (2) What range of accuracy is desirable Should the sample be collected by a procedure that is 5% accurate, or should a statistical technique be used on data from eight tests at 10% accuracy Costs of different test methods will certainly be a consideration here. (3) Which sampling and analytical methods are available that will give the required accuracy for the estimated concentration An Orsat gas analyzer with a sensitivity limit of 0.02% would not be chosen to sample carbon monoxide... 

The provision and use of properly selected personal protective equipment is normally regarded as back-up for the previous measures. Refer to Chapter 13. In some situations it is the only reasonably practicable measure to ensure personal safety and its use may be a legal requirement. Examples are ... 

Check on legal requirements and relevant standards/codes etc. 

A range of preeautions are based on the prineiples sutmuarized earlier. However, general preeautions, applieable to the majority of work situations, are listed in Table 6.14, many of whieh are ineluded in legal requirements. In the UK duties under the Fire Preeautions (Workplaee) (Amendment) Regulations 1999 are to ... 

Consult with experts on the hazards and on technical, administrative and legal requirements. 

Maintenance embraces regular inspection, periodic examination by competent persons , and repairs. Accidents may arise as a result of the lack of maintenance, during maintenance, and as a consequence of faulty maintenance. Preventive maintenance can be a legal requirement for, e.g., pressure vessels/boilers, lifting gear, power presses. A system is required for monitoring compliance witli scheduled preventive maintenance programmes, backed up by in-service inspection. Breakdown... 

Provides incentive to exceed environmental and regulatory air emissions reduction goals and reduce emission below legal requirements. 

There are many regulations governing the transportation of chemicals, and any evaluation of transportation risks and options must include consideration of those regulations. In addition, some companies have policies that require going beyond legal requirements for specific materials. 

Systems governing legally required processes are, of course, more likely to be formal and documented. If you find a one-to-one correspondence, this may suggest that your company tends toward an informal approach to management systems, documenting them only as they apply to mandatory processes. If you find formal documentation of a number of systems that support discretionary activities, this may indicate that your compands style requires more structure. 

Membership of the Institution of Plant Engineers is the hallmark of the professional plant engineer and is often a prerequisite for successful career progression. This will become increasingly so in post-1992 Europe, when evidence of appropriate professional qualifications may be a legal requirement for employment in many engineering appointments. 

There is a legal requirement upon most employers to have in force employer s liability insurance covering injury to their employees. Public liability insurance, while not compulsory, is strongly recommended, both in terms of third-party liability (arising from the effects of corporate activities) and product liability (arising from the effects of corporate products. 

Most plant sites have access to a public supply of water. Until recently this was legally required to be no more than wholesome and palatable . Water suppliers are now responsible for meeting the EC s Directives (see Table 31.1). Wherever possible, all drinking-water taps should be served directly from the incoming main, and the plant engineer s sole responsibility is to ensure that no deterioration takes place within his system. 

Reason New product Cost reduction Legal requirement... 

Whereas the Health and Safety Commission is responsible for the development of policies in the health and safety field, the Health and Safety Executive, being a separate statutory body appointed by the Commission, will work in accordance with directions and guidance given by the Commission. The Executive will provide advice on health and safety to both sides of industry and will enforce legal requirements. 

Caution Specialized worker training is legally required to use absorbent materials on spills because of the chemical reactions that can occur. For example, organic materials should never be used on nitric acid spills because a fire will result ... 

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