Harnessing E.S.M.’s diverse experience of Safety in Design within the electrical industry and track record with Solar and BESS projects, our client requested that E.S.M. facilitate a Safety in Design review workshop for a major BESS project in South Australia.
The E.S.M. project team commenced by gaining an understanding of the assets associated with the design, the work plan for construction and the hazards associated with a semi-remote location.
The design included high voltage electrical equipment such as switchgear, large-scale batteries and substation equipment. There were also construction elements to consider such as excavations, concreting and prefabricated building placement.
The location elements of the design included understanding the features of the land, such as the soil types, land use, access routes and third-party activities. The chosen site is adjacent to a sand ridge, meaning the soil has little cohesion which, when added to known local climatic conditions, means very different environments throughout the changing seasons. Summer will present high levels of dust for constructors, whilst also requiring ongoing cleaning and maintenance throughout the operational phase. Winter often sees rainfall presenting hazards to operators and maintainers attending site with possible vehicle access restrictions, or drainage issues around the site and electrical equipment. Autumn and Spring would bring increased vegetation growth and adjacent farming activity creating traffic hazards, agricultural overspray, dust and bushfire threat. Each of these conditions were analysed for their impact on the safety of workers undertaking necessary construction, operational, maintenance and eventual upgrade/end of life tasks.
The project was completed with E.S.M. enhancing the value of the project to the client, helping to identify hazards associated with the design and confirming that the client had achieved a design which they can certify as safe, so far as is reasonably practicable.
