Fire Sprinkler Testing and Commissioning SWMS

Suits fire protection contractors and building maintenance teams who test and commission sprinkler systems in commercial, industrial and multi-unit buildings. It follows the job from the test plan and isolation through pressure and flow tests, alarm checks and return to service. Installation of sprinkler systems is covered by a separate SWMS.

Testing and commissioning is construction work, but no high risk item is inherent to it, so no box is pre-ticked. A SWMS is required by law only where the job is high risk construction work (WHS Regulation s 299). Tick the items the job involves: a fall of more than 2 metres (for example from an elevating work platform at ceiling level), a confined space such as a tank or pit, asbestos that could be disturbed, energised electrical installations or services, a contaminated or flammable atmosphere, and powered mobile plant. Otherwise this document works as a written safe work procedure or task risk assessment.

Learn More: What Is A Safe Work Method Statement?
Have you ever been asked to provide a SWMS on a project in Queensland? Read our guide to what a Safe Work Method Statement is and when you need one.

What Is Covered In Our Fire Sprinkler Testing and Commissioning SWMS?

The job steps run in the order the work is done, from pre-start checks to finishing up. The hazards and controls include:

• Pipework or hoses bursting under test pressure
• Falls from ladders and elevating work platforms
• Isolating fire pumps and live valves
• Water discharge, wet floors and slips
• Water reaching electrical equipment
• Entry to risers, pits and tank rooms
• Asbestos in older plant rooms and ceilings
• Noise from pumps, bells and alarms
• Setting off building alarms and fire service calls
• Fire protection left out of service
• Moving parts on fire pump sets
• Manual handling of hoses and test gear

High Risk Construction Work

No high risk construction work items (WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) s 291) are pre-ticked, because this work is not high risk construction work by itself. Tick the items that apply to your job, such as a fall risk of more than 2 metres or work where powered mobile plant is moving.

Licences, Training and Competency

• General construction induction training card (white card) for construction work, and site induction
• Fire protection licence or endorsement as required by Queensland building and plumbing law for the work being done; the employer checks it before work starts
• Competence in fire sprinkler testing and in the system type being tested, shown by training records
• Licensed electrical worker for any work on pump motors, controllers, alarm panels or wiring (Electrical Safety Act 2002, s 55)
• Elevating work platform operator training; a high risk work licence applies only to boom-type platforms 11 m or more (WHS Regulation schedule 3)
• Training in confined space entry where a pit, tank or riser is a confined space
• Asbestos training for workers who may be involved in asbestos-related work, such as in older buildings (WHS Regulation s 445)
• First aid equipment and facilities, and trained first aiders as the work and site need (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 Regulation 2011 (Qld): ss 306A to 306N (falls, ladders and trestle platforms in construction work)
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld): ss 56 and 57 (noise), s 224 (pressure equipment) and s 445 (asbestos training)
• Managing the Risk of Falls at Workplaces Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Risks of Plant in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Confined Spaces Code of Practice 2021
• Hazardous Manual Tasks Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Noise and Preventing Hearing Loss at Work Code of Practice 2021
• How to Manage and Control Asbestos in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Risks of Hazardous Chemicals in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Managing the Work Environment and Facilities Code of Practice 2021
• First Aid in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks Code of Practice 2021
• Electrical Safety Act 2002 (Qld): ss 14, 18 and 55 (meaning of electrical equipment, electrical work and licence requirement)
• Electrical Safety Regulation 2026 (Qld): part 8, division 3 (electrical work on or near energised electrical equipment), ss 193 to 204, including ss 196 to 198 (deciding if equipment is energised and preventing re-energising)
• Electrical Safety Code of Practice 2021 – Managing electrical risks in the workplace
• Building Fire Safety Regulation 2008 (Qld): s 7 (person not to obstruct an evacuation route) and part 5 (prescribed fire safety installations)

What You Get

• An editable Microsoft Word document (14 pages), laid out on A4 landscape pages
• Business, client, job and document details typed once and filled in on every page, plus a space for your logo
• The high risk construction work checklist, worded as WHS Regulation s 291, and the construction project question (s 292)
• A worker and health and safety representative consultation record
• Qualifications, plant, PPE, hazardous chemicals, safety equipment, permits, references and emergency arrangements filled in for this work
• A 5 x 5 risk matrix, and job steps with initial and residual risk scores and the people responsible
• Implementing, monitoring and review requirements, an additional controls log, revision history and a worker sign-on sheet

Review and adjust it for your site, your plant and the way your crew does the job, and talk it through with your workers before work starts. If you have any trouble downloading this SWMS, you can contact us at any time. Please make sure you read our Disclaimer before downloading this SWMS.