FIELD                 ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY

 

Review of Gas Network Construction qualification

 

National Certificate in Gas Network Construction (Pipelaying) (Level 3) [Ref: 1022]

 

NZ Extractive Industries Training Organisation has completed the review of the qualification listed above.

 

New Qualification

 

National Certificate in Gas Network Construction (Mains Laying) (Level 4) [Ref: 1566]

 

Date new versions published                                                          June 2010

 

The next qualification review is planned to take place in 2015.

 

Summary of review and consultation process

 

The National Certificate in Gas Network Construction (Pipelaying) (Level 3) [Ref: 1022] was found to be unachievable by those candidates whose workplaces did not undertake both Service Laying and Mains Laying.  The qualification was reviewed with the intention of recognising these different roles in separate qualifications.  The review also required standards in the qualification to be reviewed, which resulted in some of these standards being replaced.

 

The standard review focussed on separating the skills required for Service Laying from the more advanced skills required for Mains Laying, so that the standards better aligned with the industry's certificate of competence.  At the same time, the skill pathway was made clearer by reworking the level 3 qualification into a Service Laying qualification, and developing a new level 4 qualification (the National Certificate in Gas Network Construction (Mains Laying (Level 4) [Ref: 1566]), which includes standards for Mains Laying and related advanced skills.

 

A specialist group of advisors, providers, and assessors met in July 2008 to review the standards and the qualifications, which were then distributed to industry whose feedback clarified the content.  Consultation also took place in July with the infrastructure pipelaying advisors at InfraTrain New Zealand, which highlighted the need for some standards to be amended to apply to both industries.

 

The reviewed standards and proposed qualifications were endorsed by the gas industry sector advisory group in November 2008.

 

Subsequently, a meeting of standard setting bodies agreed to work together to amend three polyethylene pipe jointing standards so they would be fit for purpose and relevant to all the related industries.  The updated versions of these unit standards (10980, 10987, and 25610) were included in the qualifications.

 

Main changes resulting from the review

 

National Certificate in Gas Network Construction (Pipelaying) (Level 3) [Ref: 1022]

National Certificate in Gas Network Construction (Service Laying) (Level 3) [Ref: 1022]

 

Review category

B

See Key to Qualification Review Categories at the end of report

 

Changes to structure and content

·         title descriptor was changed from Pipelaying to Service Laying to reflect the updated content of the qualification;

·         purpose statement was amended to reflect restriction to gas services context;

·         compulsory standards12507, 23283, 25607 and 25610 were added;

·         compulsory standards 9575, 10968, 10985, 10988 and 19546 were removed;

·         all optional standards were removed; and

·         total credits decreased from 85 to 84.

 

Transition

 

People working towards versions 5 or 6 of this qualification may choose to complete the requirements for those versions or transfer their results to this replacement qualification.

 

The last date for assessments to take place for versions 5 and 6 of this qualification is 31 December 2012.

 

All new trainees will be enrolled in programmes leading to version 7 of the qualification.

 

This qualification contains standards that replace earlier standards.  For the purposes of this qualification, people who have gained credit for the expiring standards are exempt from the requirement to gain credit for the replacement standards - see table below.

 

Credit for	Exempt from
10973	19547
10977, 19548	23086

 

It is not intended that anyone be disadvantaged by this review, and the above arrangements have been designed for a smooth transition.  However, anyone who feels they have been disadvantaged may appeal to the address below.

 

NZ Extractive Industries Training Organisation

PO Box 2623

Christchurch 8140

 

Telephone              03 964 4710

Email                       info@exito.org.nz

Website                   www.exito.org.nz

 

Key to Qualification Review Categories

 

Category A The qualification is published as a new version with the same NQF ID	Changes are made to SSB name, contact details or purpose statement
	No change is made to title, rules or components of the qualification
	No transition arrangements are required
Category B The qualification is published as a new version with the same NQF ID	Changes are made to title, rules or components
	The new version of the qualification recognises a similar skill set to that recognised by the previous version
	The SSB is confident that people awarded the new or previous version are comparable in terms of competence
	Transition arrangements are required if candidates must gain additional/different credits for the new version
Category C A new (replacement) qualification is published with new NQF ID	Significant changes are made to the qualification in terms of components, structure, type or level
	The SSB views people with the replacement qualification as being significantly different in terms of competence from those with the replaced qualification
	Transition arrangements are required
	Transition may be limited to phase-out dates
Category D Qualification will expire. There is no replacement qualification	Qualification is no longer required by industry
	The qualification is designated as expiring and a last date for meeting the qualification requirements is set