Mobile Welding (On-Site Repairs) SWMS

Suits mobile welders and fabricators who travel to farms, workshops, plants and other client sites in a service vehicle to repair equipment, gates, trailers and structures. It covers the site induction, parking and set-up, isolating and preparing the item, hot work and fire controls, generator and lead set-up, gas cylinders, welding fume and arc flash, and packing up.

Welding repairs on a client’s equipment are usually not construction work, and a SWMS is required by law only for high risk construction work (WHS Regulation s 299). If the repair is part of construction work on a structure, tick the items that apply: a fall of more than 2 metres, a confined space, an area that may have a flammable atmosphere, work on or near fuel or chemical lines, energised electrical installations, and a road in use. Otherwise this works as a written safe work procedure and task risk assessment.

New to SWMS? Read What Is A Safe Work Method Statement?

What Is Covered In Our Mobile Welding (On-Site Repairs) SWMS?

After the standard pre-start checks, the job steps run from “Plan the job and induct at the client’s site” to “Fire watch, cool down and pack up”. The hazards and controls include:

• Fire from sparks, spatter and slag
• Welding on containers that held flammable material
• Gas cylinder leaks, flashback and falling cylinders
• Electric shock from leads and generators
• Generator fuel spills and exhaust fumes
• Welding fume, ozone and metal fume
• Arc flash and ultraviolet burns
• Burns from hot metal and spatter
• Noise and flying particles from grinding
• Lead paint and coated metal
• Unknown site hazards and client plant
• Falls and heat when welding in awkward positions

High Risk Construction Work

None of the high risk construction work items (WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) s 291) are pre-ticked, because this job is not high risk construction work by itself. Tick any that apply on your site.

Licences, Training and Competency

• Trade qualification or verified competency in each welding process used (arc, MIG, TIG or oxy-fuel); Schedule 3 of the WHS Regulation has no high risk work licence class for welding
• Training in oxy-fuel equipment and the handling of gas cylinders where oxy-fuel is used
• Fire watch trained to use the extinguisher and raise the alarm
• Training in the fit, use and care of the respirator and other PPE
• Confined space entry training where the job includes a confined space (separate SWMS)
• Site induction at each client site and the client’s hot work permit rules
• General construction induction training card (white card) where the work is construction work on a construction site
• Licensed electrical worker for repairs to the electrical parts of welders and leads (Electrical Safety Act 2002 s 55)
• First aid equipment and facilities, and trained first aiders as the work needs (WHS Regulation s 42)

Legislation and Codes of Practice Referenced

• Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld)
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld)
• Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld): ss 16 and 46 (more than one duty holder)
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld): ss 52, 53 and 355 (ignition sources, flammable stock, fire and explosion)
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld): ss 208, 210 and 213 (plant), ss 56 to 58 (noise), s 48 (remote or isolated work)
• Welding Processes Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Risks of Hazardous Chemicals in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Risks of Plant in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Noise and Preventing Hearing Loss at Work Code of Practice 2021
• Hazardous Manual Tasks Code of Practice 2021
• Confined Spaces Code of Practice 2021
• Managing the Risk of Falls at Workplaces Code of Practice 2021
• Managing the Work Environment and Facilities Code of Practice 2021
• How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks Code of Practice 2021
• Petroleum and Gas (Safety) Regulation 2018 (Qld): ss 140 to 144 (carrying LPG and other fuel gas cylinders in enclosed vehicles)
• Electrical Safety Act 2002 (Qld): s 55 (electrical work licence)
• Electrical Safety Regulation 2026 (Qld): ss 139 and 140 (safety switches and construction work equipment) and exclusion zones in Schedule 2
• Electrical Safety Code of Practice 2021 – Managing electrical risks in the workplace

What You Get

• An editable Microsoft Word document (14 A4 landscape pages). Type your business, client and job details once and they fill in on every page, with a space for your logo
• 9 job steps for this work, each with its hazards, controls, initial and residual risk scores and the person responsible
• PPE listed for this job: welding helmet with the correct filter shade, and safety glasses under the helmet; flame-resistant clothing, leather welding gloves, apron and sleeves where needed; leather safety boots
• Emergency arrangements for: fire, gas leak or flashback and arc eye, burns or electric shock
• Plus the parts every Work Safety QLD SWMS shares, from the s 291 checklist to the worker sign-on sheet (see the layout in our free SWMS template)

Adjust it for your site, plant and crew, and talk it through with your workers before work starts. Please make sure you read our Disclaimer before downloading this SWMS.

Checked against the Queensland laws and codes of practice listed above. Last reviewed November 2026.