ENGINEERING - Royal Australian Navy

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N A VY E N G I N E E R I N G B U L L E TI N F E B R U A RY 2 00 2 5 5 regulations, there are other aspects of licensing which are covered by the regulator y authority that are not relevant to education and training organisations. For example; design attributes, preventative measures, mandatory operational procedures, length of time served, period of time since last audit, the provision of protective clothing and equipment, restrictions on the use of materials and chemicals, etc. Similarly, educational qualifications may address other aspects of competence beyond that specifically needed for a license for example; life skills, management techniques both personnel and economic and aspects of quality which go beyond safety. The objectives of education and training and regulatory authorities overlap but are not totally shared. This can be summarised in Figure 1. The diagram shows that some areas of competence overlap. Those areas of education that do not overlap would be the skills and knowledge required by an organisation, such as Navy, to do a specific job, ie be an MT(E) or MT(M). Similarly those areas of licensing that do not overlap would be items required of the licensing body ie 12 months electrical wiring installation work in residential situations, or in the case of Marine qualifications Sea time. SO HOW CAN I GET MY E L E C T R I CAL LICENSE? The answer to this question is simply that you will have to do some work off your own bat, but with a little help from the Navy. To get your license involves a few steps, but the steps depend on some factors like what qualification you have and which State you live in. What ever your circumstances, the following steps may help you: 1. Go and see the regulatory authority in the State in which you reside to determine where your shortfalls are and what you need to do to obtain a license. Take a copy of all your qualifications with you. 2. Enrol in TAFE and do (fo r e xa mple) the AS/NZS 3000: 2000 wiring rules, and any oth e r c o u rses that may be re qu i re d a fter you have spoken to th e re g u l a to ry body. Don’t fo rget to a p p ly for Defence Assisted St u d y S cheme (DASS) to help you with the fees (DI(N) PERS 20-5 re fe rs ) . 3. Depending on the Regulator y bodies requirements you may have to work with a contractor for 12 months. If this is the case then my personal advice is to approach a civvy contractor and offer to work for him on weekends, evenings and whilst on leave. 4. As part of the licensing, and due to the introduction of a National Uniform Electrical Licensing framework, you may have to undergo a comprehensive examination comprising both practical skill and knowledge assessment. SO WHY CA N ’T NAVY TEACH ME THE WIRING RULES? S i mp ly Navy does not re qu i re you to know the AS/NZS 3000: 2000 wiring rules. As an MT(E) you are not re qu i red to wire up a house, shop or fa c to ry. The same applies for other ite m s w h i ch a licensing auth o rity may need and Navy does not. H oweve r, the qu a l i fications yo u re c e i ve cover a substa n t i a l p ro p o rtion of what is needed fo r you to gain your license. Use th e DASS system to make up th e s h o rt falls in tra i n i n g . W H AT ABOUT ENG I N E RO O M T I CK E TS AND RECOGNITION BY AMSA ? Again we are talking about a re g u l a to ry auth o ri t y. The Au st ra l i a n M a ritime Safety Au th o rity (AMSA ) is a national auth o rity and is responsible, on behalf of th e C o m m o nwe a l th Gove rnment, fo r the regulation and safety ove rs i g h t of Au st ralia’s shipping fleet and m a n a gement of Au st ra l i a ’ s i n te rnational maritime obliga t i o n s . One of its roles is to enhance s a fety th rough the administe ri n g of the cert i fication (licensing) of seafa re rs . The certification of civilian seafarers is governed by the Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers 1995 (STCW95) which is a convention administered by the International Maritime Organisation, of which Australia is a member. STCW95 has been enacted in Australia b y an Act of Federal Parliament. Work is currently being conducted between AMSA and DNPR(E&L) to identify exactly where Navy sailors meet the requirements of STCW95. This is not a simple task because Navy operates ships very differently from those in the civilian world. We have more people onboard, we watchkeep in the machinery space or in a central location (ie CCS, MCR or on the bridge) we generally don’t load cargo on and off the ship (there are some exceptions here) and we don’t log our seatime. Part of the ‘licensing’ of a seafarer is a specific amount of time at sea, as we don’t log this very accurately, we know when we post on a ship and when we post off, but their may be a lot of time alongside in that period. As a result AMSA halve our seatime. Another area we fall short of is in the educational area. AMSA require, for example, an Engineer Class 2 to have completed a Diploma of Marine Engineering from an AMSA approved Training Provider. Navy’s training does not cover everything in this Diploma as Navy does not require every MT to know thermodynamics, stability and other subjects to the level of a Diploma.
5 6 N A VY EN G I N E E R I N G B UL L ET IN F E B RU A RY 20 0 2 The above can appear to be all doom and gloom, but this is not the case, AMSA will and do give a level of recognition, but it is dependent on what you have accomplished during your time in the Navy. They treat the recognition on a case by case basis. As mentioned earlier, DNPR(E&L) is working with AMSA to simplify and streamline the recognition process. DNPR(E&L) may be successful in gaining a streamlined process but one factor will always remain; and that is the sitting of an AMSA oral examination. Even those people who obtain a Diploma or Advanced Diploma from an AMSA approved Training provider still have to sit an oral examination, it is part of the license regime. SO WHAT RECOGNITION DO I GET FOR AN OPERATO R Q UA L I F I CATION? At the AMSA or National level you could expect to gain recognition for half your sea time, your civilian trade qualification should be recognised, whether it is a NSW Tradesman’s Certificate or a MERS Certificate III. They may recognise aspects of First aid, Firefighting and Survival at Sea. AMSA would then expect you to complete an approved course at an approved Training Provider before they would allow you to sit an oral examination. If however you wished to apply for a State based ‘Certificate of Competence’ then the process is a lot better. DNPR(E&L) gained a level of recognition with the National Marine Safety Committee (NMSC) last November. The NMSC consists of representatives from each of the State and Territory Marine Authorities and AMSA. The NMSC produced a ‘Guideline for Recognition of Australian Defence Force Marine Qualifications’. This publication is available at the NMSC we b s i te (www. n m s c . g ov. a u ) . The guideline gives the examiner in each State or Territory guidance on how much Recognition of Prior Learning they should give sailors who hold an AMOC, MWC or EWC. The guideline gives almost equivalent recognition as follows: • AMOC – Marine Engine Driver Class 3 • MWC – Marine Engine Driver Class 2 • EWC – Marine Engine Driver Class 1 T h e re may be some short falls in some areas for exa mple Math s at the Marine Engine Dri ve r Class 1 level. The guideline also accepts that you would have a t tained the re qu i red seatime, a fter all you would have had to been at sea to gain an AMOC, M WC or EWC. It also assumes you have comp l e ted Fi rst Aid, Fi re Fighting and Surv i val at Sea t raining. You will, howeve r, have to sit an oral examination pri o r to being awa rded the re l eva n t C e rt i fi c a te of Comp e te n c y. This will satisfy the Licensing re qu i re m e n t . If the examiner is not confident with your abilities, he will not award you with the Certificate of Competence, he will advise you on the short falls and how you can address them before sitting the oral examination again. Remember he is taking responsibility for ensuring you meet a regulation of an Act of Parliament. As you will be sitting an oral assessment I would suggest you check out the Uniform Shipping Laws (USL) Code, Section 2/3. It is expensive to purchase in its entirety, but you would only need sections 1, 2 and/or 3. They are available from Government Information Shops. Section 1 covers Introduction, Definitions and General Requirements and costs $4.00, Section 2 covers Qualifications and Manning, Trading Vessels and costs $6.95, and section 3 covers Qualifications and Manning, Fishing Vessels and its cost is $9.50. Please be aware that there is change afoot to the USL Code by the introduction of the National Standard for Commercial Vessels (NSCV). Part D of this covers Crew Competencies. The NSCV has yet to be passed into legislation by an ‘Act’ of each and every State, so this may take a while. CO NC LUSION As you can see from the above, gaining a license, whether it be for an A Grade Electrician or Marine Engine Driver, is no mere formality. It is not something the Navy can do for you, as Navy cannot give the license, as Navy is not the regulatory body. The qu a l i fications Navy does awa rd you are a step towa rd s these licenses, but may not cove r all aspects of what you need. T h e re fo re, use the DASS system to ‘ top-up’ on the education aspects. DNPR(E&L) is working towards making the processes of gaining licenses as easy as possible, but when each State licenses in a different way this makes things very difficult. Changes are happening, with things like the introduction of National Electrical Licensing but they usually have to be brought into legislation by an ‘Act’ of State Parliament, and we all know how long politics takes. If you would like to discuss any details of this article then I can be contacted by email at rob.allard@defence.gov.au or by phone on (02) 6266 4110. About the author Rob Allard spent 22 years in the Navy as a MTP and MT, he paid off in January 1997 as a Warrant Officer, his last posting was as the DMEO on HMAS Melbourne, which he regards as the ultimate job for a sailor. He has worked in DNPR(E&L) since its inception, and in DEP(N) before that. He has been involved with training and employment issues since he started in DEP(N) in June 1997 and his ultimate goal is to gain as much recognition for the MT operator qualifications as possible, as he never got any when he paid off.
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