APGA and some of the AS2885.info team have organised an online seminar about demonstration of conformance with AS 2885, 11:30 am – 1:30 pm Wednesday, 4 August, 2021.
Join us for a very special webinar event as APGA and members of the AS2885.info project team host an online workshop for presentations and discussion on matters relevant to conformance with the AS 2885 suite of Standards. The webinar will be a hybrid interactive format, and if you have been involved in demonstration of conformance with a story to tell, you are invited to join us as a panel member.
Pipeline design, construction, operation and maintenance must be done in a manner that conforms with the requirements of the AS 2885 Standard which is referenced in Australian legislation and regulation. But the way conformance should be determined and documented (and why) is not set out in any written guidelines.
This webinar seeks to raise awareness of the various ways in which conformance can be demonstrated in the pipeline industry today. The webinar is not intended to provide definitive answers to conformance, but to discuss the various ways to do it.
The basic questions relevant to the discussion are:
· When is assurance of conformance required?
· Who should provide assurance of conformance, how, and why?
· How can the client, licensee, or the regulator be confident that conformance has been achieved?
If you work with AS 2885 and have ever been asked to demonstrate conformance to the Standard, this workshop is for you. You can attend as a webinar guest (not visible to attendees), or as a Panel Member (visible on screen).
Panel members will include the AS2885.info team and invited industry members, with Susan Jaques acting as facilitator.
AS2885-INFO.blog 
I have viewed the recording of the Demonstration of Conformance webinar. My thoughts are as follows:
• There are multiple reasons for demonstration of conformance, examples I have been involved with include:
o Meeting the technical regulator’s requirements / expectations
o Administering a contract with a service provider (design, construction or operations) where compliance with AS2885 is a contractual clause
o Meeting internal governance requirements of a pipeline company, i.e. confirm to senior management or the Board that requirements of the industry code are being met
o Being in a legally defendable position should there be a serious incident that initiates any of the following:
Coronial enquiry
Worksafe enquiry
Insurance claim dispute
Expert witness investigation
Civil lawsuits
• Black and white conformance with clauses need to be considered in the light the reasons for demonstrating compliance.
• The AS2885 is never written with the rigor of the contents of acts and regulations. Black and white interpretation as I have experienced with one regulator can become nonsensical where AS2885 is referenced in the regulations. I quote one statement made to me “whether the code is right or wrong, if it is called up in the Regulations you shall comply”
• There are many clauses which are quite useful that do not apply to all pipelines and operating scenarios.
As a general comment, we should be very cautious about adding in well-meaning new “procedural” requirements into AS2885 noting that in many instances there can be unintended consequences that go well beyond fitness for purpose.
I commend you and your group for pulling this together. It was obviously well attended and some very thought provoking statements were presented. John Blain, Ninox Solutions Pty. Ltd.
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