At Mobile Test ‘n’ Cal we’re all about safety and compliance. We know it can get a bit confusing trying to figure out your obligations, so we are here to explain them according to the regulatory hierarchy.
Acts and Regulations
At the top, we have acts and regulations, these may be national or state, but either way, compliance is mandatory. You can be fined or prosecuted for failing to abide.
Codes of Practice, Standards and Guidelines
Under that, we have codes of practice, standards and guidelines. Unless referenced or called upon an act or regulations, these are technically not law. Compliance is not mandatory and failing to abide can’t be fined or prosecuted. That all changes when something does go wrong, and people get hurt or killed, or even equipment gets damaged.
The moment something goes wrong; codes of practice, standards and guidelines may as well be the law. Because of the way the legal system works you’d have a tough time justifying why you ignored codes of practice, standards and guidelines. A prosecutor, coroner or lawyer will only take a few hours research to find all of the codes of practice, standards and guidelines that might apply to your case then take you to task over not following them. Don’t risk it. Comply with any applicable acts and regulations, but also codes of practice, standards and guidelines.
Quality Assurance
Aside from the external requirements to have your equipment tested and calibrated, many companies have Quality Assurance systems which outline the requirements around equipment being tested and calibrated. In our experience, these can often be more stringent than the Acts or Codes dictate, so it is a good idea to check with your Quality Manager to ensure you are meeting your Quality Assurance Obligations.
