Plant & Equipment Refuelling SWMS

Refuelling mobile plant and stationary equipment on construction and mining sites involves transferring Class 3 flammable liquids (diesel, petrol) and Class 2.1 flammable gases (LPG) from bowsers, service trucks, IBCs, or 205L drums into machinery fuel tanks. The operation creates simultaneous fire, explosion, environmental, and manual handling exposures every time a nozzle is connected. Under WHS Regulation 2025 Chapter 7 (Hazardous Chemicals) and AS 1940:2017, refuelling activities involving flammable liquids in quantities exceeding manifest thresholds, or conducted near ignition sources, are designated high-risk construction work requiring a documented Safe Work Method Statement before commencement. The SWMS must address static bonding, spill containment hierarchy, hot work exclusion zones, and emergency response. PCBUs failing to prepare, communicate, or enforce this SWMS face enforceable undertakings, prohibition notices, and Category 1 prosecution where reckless conduct causes serious injury or environmental harm reportable under state EPA legislation.

Hazards identified

7 hazards covered, sorted by priority.

Control measures

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

1. 1Elimination — Replace diesel-powered ancillary plant with battery-electric equivalents where site duty cycle permits, removing on-site refuelling activity entirely from the work package.
2. 2Elimination — Schedule all refuelling at end of shift when engines are cool and personnel numbers in vicinity are at minimum, removing hot-surface and bystander exposure.
3. 3Substitution — Replace petrol-powered small plant (compactors, generators) with diesel equivalents where feasible to raise flashpoint from -43°C to above 60°C reducing vapour ignition risk.
4. 4Substitution — Use closed-circuit dry-break couplings on service trucks in place of open nozzle bowser fills to eliminate splash-fill static and vapour release.
5. 5Engineering — Install bonding cable with crocodile clip from bowser/drum to receiving plant chassis before opening fill cap, verifying continuity per AS 1940:2017 Clause 9.6.
6. 6Engineering — Provide bunded refuelling pad with 110% drum capacity containment, interceptor pit, and spill kit containing absorbent booms, pillows, and granular absorbent within 3 metres.
7. 7Administrative — Establish and signpost 3-metre no-smoking, no-ignition exclusion zone per AS 1940 Section 5; brief all workers via this SWMS at pre-start with sign-on register.
8. 8Administrative — Verify 9kg dry chemical fire extinguisher (30B rating minimum) inspected within 6 months is positioned upwind within 5 metres before any transfer commences.
9. 9PPE — Wear anti-static cotton or treated coveralls, chemical-resistant nitrile gloves to AS/NZS 2161.10, safety glasses to AS/NZS 1337.1, and steel-cap boots to AS/NZS 2210.3.
10. 10PPE — Use full-face shield over safety glasses and elbow-length gauntlets when decanting from 205L drums or connecting LPG forklift cylinders to protect against splash and cold burns.

Applicable Codes of Practice

High-Risk Construction Work triggered

Worked example

On a regional highway upgrade project, the service truck operator arrives at the laydown area to refuel three idle excavators at shift change. Before commencing, the site supervisor opens this SWMS at the daily pre-start meeting, walks the four-person crew through the seven identified hazards, and confirms each worker signs the consultation register acknowledging the 3-metre exclusion zone. The operator identifies that the southernmost excavator sits within 8 metres of a stormwater inlet — a hazard not perfectly matching the controls as written. Applying the SWMS hierarchy, he elects to relocate refuelling to the bunded pad rather than fill in situ, documenting the variation on the SWMS amendment page. Before transfer, he attaches the bonding cable from bowser to excavator chassis, verifies the 9kg extinguisher is positioned upwind, and confirms the engine has cooled for fifteen minutes since shutdown. Mid-transfer, a delivery driver approaches with a lit cigarette; the operator halts transfer, points to the exclusion signage referenced in the SWMS, and directs the driver away before resuming. After completion, he inspects the nozzle area for drips, closes out the SWMS daily log with no spill recorded, and reports the stormwater proximity to the supervisor for permanent bund relocation. The SWMS functions as a live field document — not a filing cabinet artefact.

Related legislation

• WHS Act 2011 (model)
• WHS Regulation 2025
• AS 1940 — Storage and handling of flammable and combustible liquids

Frequently asked questions