Power Generation Equipment Installation SWMS

Power generation equipment installation covers the delivery, positioning, mechanical fitting, fuel connection and electrical termination of diesel or gas-fired generator sets, uninterruptible power supplies, synchronising switchgear and associated exhaust, cooling and fuel systems. The work brings together heavy lifts of skid-mounted plant weighing several tonnes, live LV and HV electrical connections into main switchboards or transfer switches, pressurised natural gas or LPG piping, hot exhaust componentry, stored fuel loads and running plant that produces carbon monoxide, high noise and rotating hazards. A single uncontrolled release of energy — electrical, mechanical, chemical or gravitational — can be fatal.

Under the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2025 (NSW), this scope engages section 291 as high risk construction work on multiple grounds, and section 299 obliges the PCBU to prepare a SWMS before the work commences, in consultation with workers under section 47. Controls must follow the hierarchy in section 36, prioritising isolation, lock-out and permit systems over administrative measures or PPE, and the SWMS must be reviewed under section 302 whenever controls are revised or an incident occurs.

Hazards identified

12 hazards covered, sorted by priority.

Control measures

Hierarchy-of-controls order: elimination → substitution → isolation → engineering → administrative → PPE.

1. 1Eliminate live work: de-energise, isolate, tag and lock all incoming supplies, control circuits and battery banks before terminations; verify dead with a tested two-pole tester in accordance with AS/NZS 4836 and the safe approach distances in AS/NZS 4836 Appendix A.
2. 2Substitute gas commissioning risk by staging fuel connection last, purging with inert gas and pressure-testing pipework in accordance with AS/NZS 5601.1 prior to introducing fuel; only licensed gasfitters perform connection.
3. 3Engineered lifting: engage a licensed dogger and crane operator, use certified lifting lugs on the skid, calculate loads and rig in accordance with AS 2550.1 and the manufacturer's lift plan; exclusion-zone the lift radius.
4. 4Lockout/tagout program aligned to AS 4024.1603 with personal danger tags and multi-hasp lockboxes for every isolation point (mains, alternator, starter battery, gas, coolant heater, remote start).
5. 5Mechanical ventilation and continuous CO monitoring during any indoor test run; interlock generator start to ventilation confirmation; design exhaust in accordance with AS 1668.2 for permanent ventilation.
6. 6Silica and asbestos controls: pre-drilling asbestos register review under the WHS Regulation 2025 (NSW) sections 422–425; on-tool water suppression or H-class HEPA extraction for concrete drilling; air monitoring where workplace exposure standard may be approached.
7. 7Fuel and fire controls: bunded day tanks, drip trays under connections, spill kits on-site, dry-chemical and CO2 extinguishers rated per AS 2444, hot work permit for any grinding or welding near fuel systems.
8. 8Hearing protection Class 5 during load bank testing per AS/NZS 1270, combined with signage-controlled exclusion of non-essential workers from the plant room during runs.
9. 9Guarding of rotating parts (belts, fans, couplings) confirmed in place before first start, and hot surface labelling and thermal barriers in accordance with AS 4024.1 machinery safety principles.
10. 10Fall protection where working above 2 m on stacks or enclosures: elevating work platform or compliant scaffold in accordance with AS/NZS 1576 and AS/NZS 1891 harness systems where an EWP is not practicable.
11. 11Electrical testing and certification by a licensed electrical worker before energisation, including insulation resistance, earth continuity and RCD tests to AS/NZS 3000 and AS/NZS 3017; Certificate of Compliance Electrical Work (CCEW) issued.
12. 12All workers hold CPCCWHS1001 (White Card) and relevant HV/switching, gasfitting, EWP or rigging tickets; SWMS developed and reviewed in consultation with workers under section 47, signed on before work, and reviewed under section 302 after any incident, control change or when the work method changes.

Applicable Codes of Practice

High-Risk Construction Work triggered

Worked example

A mechanical services contractor is installing a 1250 kVA diesel standby generator on the roof plant deck of a commercial tower in Parramatta. The 8.4 tonne skid is craned in from George Street using a 220-tonne mobile crane, positioned onto a concrete plinth cored the previous shift with on-tool water suppression to control silica. Electrical terminations run through a new ATS into the building's main switchboard, requiring the incoming Ausgrid supply to be isolated overnight under a permit. A licensed gasfitter connects the day-tank fuel return and vent piping, pressure-tested to AS/NZS 5601.1. Before the first commissioning run, mechanical ventilation to the plant room is proven, CO monitors are placed, exclusion zones set, and the SWMS is re-signed by all workers after the site supervisor updates the controls following a section 302 review triggered by a change in the exhaust routing.

Related legislation

• Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (NSW)
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2025 (NSW)
• Electricity Supply Act 1995 (NSW)
• Gas Supply Act 1996 (NSW)
• Gas and Electricity (Consumer Safety) Act 2017 (NSW)
• Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997 (NSW)

Frequently asked questions