Electroplating (General) SWMS

Electroplating operations involving nickel, copper and zinc deposition expose workers to acutely toxic chemical baths, metal-laden mists, hydrogen evolution and significant electrical hazards from high-current rectifiers. The work combines wet chemistry, energised conductors and aerosol generation in a single confined process area, creating overlapping exposure pathways that no single control can fully mitigate. Under WHS Regulation 2025, plating tasks meet the threshold for High Risk Construction Work where structural, confined space, or chemical bath criteria apply, and a Safe Work Method Statement is mandatory before work commences. The PCBU must prepare, consult workers on, and retain this SWMS for the duration of the work plus two years following any notifiable incident. This template provides a CIH-reviewed, state-neutral framework covering process tanks, ventilation, electrical isolation, PPE selection and emergency response — editable to suit your specific anode chemistry, bath concentrations and shop layout across all eight Australian jurisdictions.

Hazards identified

7 hazards covered, sorted by priority.

Control measures

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

1. 1Elimination — Replace cyanide-based copper strike with non-cyanide alkaline copper chemistry where deposit specification permits, removing the highest acute toxicity hazard from the process entirely.
2. 2Elimination — Automate jig loading and unloading using overhead programmable hoists to remove worker presence above active bath surfaces during plating cycles.
3. 3Substitution — Use trivalent chromium or zinc-nickel alloy substitutes in place of higher-hazard chemistries; specify low-mist surfactant additives in nickel baths to suppress aerosol generation.
4. 4Engineering — Install lateral or push-pull local exhaust ventilation on every active tank delivering minimum 0.5 m/s capture velocity, tested and documented per AS 1668.2 annually.
5. 5Engineering — Fit rectifiers with lockable isolation, residual current devices, insulated busbar shrouds and emergency stop within arm's reach of every operating position.
6. 6Engineering — Provide bunded secondary containment to 110% of largest tank volume, chemical-resistant flooring with drainage segregation between acid, alkali and cyanide zones.
7. 7Administrative — Mandate two-person rule for bath maintenance, documented bath compatibility matrix, daily pre-start checks recorded against this SWMS and 12-monthly health monitoring per WHS Reg Schedule 14.
8. 8Administrative — Conduct toolbox briefing using this SWMS before each shift, verify SDS currency, post emergency procedures bilingually and rehearse spill/shock response quarterly.
9. 9PPE — Issue chemical-resistant PVC or butyl gauntlets to elbow, splash apron, full-face shield over safety glasses, and chemical-resistant boots compliant with AS/NZS 2210.3.
10. 10PPE — Provide powered air-purifying respirators with combination acid gas/HEPA cartridges for bath decanting tasks, fit-tested annually per AS/NZS 1715 with records retained.

Applicable Codes of Practice

High-Risk Construction Work triggered

Worked example

At a regional automotive component refinishing facility, the shift supervisor opens the morning pre-start brief at the nickel-zinc plating line by reviewing this SWMS with the three operators rostered on. Working through the hazard register, she confirms the bath surface mist extraction was tested at 0.6 m/s the previous Friday and the rectifier RCD passed its monthly press-to-test. An operator raises that yesterday's batch of automotive brackets produced visible mist plumes — the team agrees to increase wetting agent dosing per the SWMS substitution control and re-check capture at smoko. All four workers sign the SWMS register on the laminated sheet at the line entry, noting today's specific chemistry batch numbers. Mid-shift, a jig fouls a busbar and an operator instinctively reaches in with a wet glove; the buddy worker calls a stop, isolates the rectifier at the lockable disconnect referenced in the engineering controls, and the supervisor amends the SWMS field-change log to add a non-conductive jig retrieval hook as a new engineering control. At handover, the document is filed, the amendment uploaded to the compliance register, and the incoming afternoon shift briefed on the new retrieval procedure before any tank is re-energised — demonstrating the SWMS functioning as a live operational document rather than a static compliance artefact.

Related legislation

• WHS Act 2011 (model)
• WHS Regulation 2025
• AS/NZS 3000 — Electrical installations

Frequently asked questions