Posted By Stewart Campbell
As a principle contractor that carries out interior outfitting we have to submit information for the Health and Safety File and an Operation and Maintenance Manual for services installed.
A key message of CDM 2007 is to reduce bureaucracy. I understand what is required for the Health and Safety File, but the guidance I have for the production of operation and maintenance manuals (BSI 4884-1:1992) includes what I consider to be lots of unnecessary duplication of information.
I have been unable to find any official guidance on how O&M manuals can work in harmony with the H&S File. Does any exist?
I would be interested in anyones opinion on what the content of O&M manuals should be.

Posted By Lee Mac
Totally agree with Robert and Stewart- far too much time is wasted on the H&S File in duplicating docs.

My handle on it, is to keep it as straight forward as possible and user friendly and I must say most of our Clients in agreement.

The larger files that have been put together, I often see them as a paperwork excersise and no-one would ever wish to be going through a mountain of documents when it could all be put into one or two files that are to the point and easy for anyone to use.

Lee


Lee

Posted By Stewart Campbell
I am going to produce a slimmed down document to compliment the H&S file. Does anyone see a problem with this so far as legislation is concerned?
The H&S file should cover most of what is needed for emergency contacts and as built drawings, so all that is really required is a list of equipment, manufacurers instructions, and any information relating to specific access of equipment located in obstructed position. Is there a problem with referencing manufacturers instructions contained in an appendix?

Posted By Robert.
At the onset, the "construction" of the safety file O&M amnual or whatever format should be decided and agreed upon before commencement of works. each contractor / designer should be given specifics as what to provide for end user benefit.The CDMC collates (coordinates) all relevant information and eg classifies, elec, mech, building, HAVC, ground maint etc etc etc.
Format, well, backed up electronic of course!!

Save trees!!

Posted By Robert.
PC and Designers supply info for the O&M / safety file.
CDMC prepares safety file along with other historical and relevant info

Posted By MAK
Hi Stewart,

Unless the client has stipulated a complicated format for the O&M's, and believe me some of them do, and hence why some contracts employ technical authors, the PC is the best situated person to compile the O&M's.

In other cases either the client or the CDM-C should not have any issue on how you present the relevant information. I tell some contractors, that unless the client has stipulated a clear determined format , I dont really care if it comes in with a pretty pink flower pattern (no PC's have taken me up on this:) ) that there are no other set requirements for format, as Robert states above.

The content is always, of course the key issue. The new CDM thankfully expects us all to exclude 100's of pages that no maintenance engineer will actually look it, and retain the key items. specifications, components/life expectancy, schematics if required, frequency regime and procedures etc etc. The risk information and the other information, to respond to one of your posts above, obviously is compiled from residual or design information and therefore necessarily forms part of the CDM-C remit.

Overall, the CDM-C's you work with, should appreciate less irrelevant paper to wade through.

Hence this is why CDM-C's are not required to compile the O&Ms if they are required to be handed over with the H&S file. We are not the contractor who installed the equipment or the supplier or the manufacturer. You know (as PC) and the manufacturer should know best how to install, or maintain, or remove the installed equipment. You as purchaser are in the best position to obtain relevant literature to include in the O&M's.

At the start of your appointment, the best method to ensure your client requirements are to be met during this process is to clarify with the CDM-C exactly what the client requirements are or review any/all available contract documentation you have been issued.

Speaking as one 'enlightened' CDM-C in this respect at least and to answer your last question, this CDM-C cannot confirm that we will be compliing the O&M's for the above reasons.

I hope this helps.

Posted By MAK
Clients, PC CDM-C and Designers are required by the CDM 2007 to create the H&S File and O&M's have become a necessary extension to that. You have no statutory duties applied by any other agent other than the client contract.

If you have the new ACOP see page 62. Paragraph 263.

Typical O&M content is listed in sections (d) & (e)
(g) if installed or affected by the PC's contract
and (h)

Going only on the information above, Im with you. I would be resistant to being asked or expected to supply additonal information (based on BSI and The Building Service Research and Information Association, Guidance) which sounds more like design standards. i.e para 263 (c) required to be supplied by the designers. However, this sometimes is a standard inclusion to a set format document that is issued to all parties at the start of the project. Occasionally it does apply to the PC as in some cases they are required to input to the design (again stipulated in contracts)and therefore accept some of the designers responsibilites.

Posted By Stewart Campbell
MAK you have highlighted a confusing point. The information you mention from c), d), G), and h) in para 263 p62 of the cdm 2007 ACoP is information that I would have supplied under the heading "Health and Safety File Information". To repeat this in a seperate O&M Manual seems crazy. Am I missing the point? If this is the case then surely Robert was spot on when he wrote: PC, designers, provide info for the Health and Safety File and the CDMC will seperate out that information into a H&S file and O&M Manual. Is it my mistake to seperate the O&M Manual and H&S File. This seperation is what I understand CDM 2007 requires; slimming down the H&S file to reveal residual risks for future construction.

Posted By Robert K Lewis
I much prefer to start at the point that the H&S File needs to refer out to information in the O&Ms not the other way round. The detail is only there if the O&Ms need amplification or are silent, eg the O&Ms for a boiler will not detail the layout and line of the gas supply. The O&M manuals have been around a long time before 1994 and are typically produced by manufacturers and the content and format is governed by this. I expect the (principal) contractor merely to create a referenced library of this material relevant to all that is installed, and to nothing else.

The reference does not to be detailed and certainly should not duplicate the O&Ms, this is the major reason I review the O&Ms to avoid unnecessary duplication. The CDM-C does need to guide the client into the most suitable format and that is where experience and competence come into effect. CDM does not specify the need for O&Ms the need is defined in other legislation.

Posted By Robert K Lewis
If you look say at the gas safety legislation there is a requirement to supply a user manual with each item installed. We tend to think of CDM being the primary source of such requirements - it is not. CDM requires a H&S file, this contains the information set out in the acop but does not need, as i said previously, details contained in the O&Ms. The old acop clearly stated that they were separate but the new acop has blurred the edges - in my mind the attempt was to make clear that the document sets were integrated and thus avoid duplication.

A| typical file structure would thus be

Section 1 - General information

Section 2 - As builts (Substructure and superstructure)

Section 3 - Service layouts (External and Internal)

Section 5 - Risk Information

Section 6 - O&Ms

You can slice the cake however you wish dependant on how it is best used in an organisation.

Bob

Posted By Ron Hunter
I like Bob's Format.
Most importantly, the layout should make it easier for the NEXT Project CDM-C to UPDATE the H&S File!

How many of us have seem entirely seperate documentation prepared for a consequential Project, with no attempt at all to dovetail into the existing H&S File? I know I have, and with depressing regularity.

The issue of keeping the File up to date w.r.t non-notified work has not been satisfactorily addressed in CDM 2007, and I feel this is a bit of a serious cop-out by the regulators, and an area of CDM2007 which fails us all. A siccession of fairly minor jobs over a period of time can very quickly render H&S File information redundant, and dangerously so (e.g. services plans).
This to my mind tends to encourage a "Project" and not a "Structure" approach and mentality.

Posted By Ron Hunter
Robert,

And in the real world, how does the inexpert client comply? Who tells him he actually has such a duty, tells him what actually constitutes 'relevant' information, and who physically updates the File?

Given that page 61 of the ACoP is headed "Notifiable Projects Only" who is actually going to heed this?

Sorry, Bob - got a bit of a strop on this one.The intention may well have been there when the Regs and ACoP were being drafted, but it hasn't come out in the wash.