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Electrofusion welding RAMS Builder
Electrofusion welding risk assessment and method statement
Prepare RAMS for joining PE pipe with electrofusion sockets and making saddle branches. Add the pipe, fittings and control box, edit the suggested steps and review the PDF draft.
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Prepare the Electrofusion welding RAMS
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What will you be doing?
More details
Pick everything this RAMS covers. The questions that follow are chosen from what you tick here.
What a Electrofusion welding RAMS covers
Electrofusion here means welding polyethylene pipe with a fitting that heats itself: preparing and clamping the pipe, fusing a coupler over the joint, or fusing a saddle onto the main for a branch.
- Join PE pipe with a socket
- Make a PE saddle branch
Suggested steps and hazards for Electrofusion welding
What it offers for join PE pipe with a socket before you have answered anything.
Check the weather before you start
- Do not lift or fix long pipe and fittings in strong wind; a large sheet is a sail.
- Stop in heavy rain, ice or lightning, and rest in the shade in hot weather.
Hazard
Wind catches the long pipe and fittings or blows someone off balance at height
Who might be harmed and how
The team and people below
Controls in place
- Agree a wind limit for panels and platforms and check the forecast each morning.
- Tie down or take in loose materials before you leave.
Wind is the main weather cause of falls and dropped loads in outside work at height.
HSE: Work at height Check the pipe and fitting
- Confirm the pipe and fitting are compatible and the pipe end is sound and square.
- Keep the fitting sealed until preparation is ready.
Hazard
A poor or incompatible joint failing in service
Who might be harmed and how
The fusion operator and people using the pipe
Controls in place
- Use the fitting maker's instructions and the approved joint record.
- Stop if damage, ovality or compatibility is not resolved.
Checking compatibility and the pipe end prevents a poor joint from being made.
POP001A Guide to Electrofusion Assembly and Welding Prepare a clean, dry weld zone
- Remove dirt and the oxidised surface with the approved tool.
- Use an approved alcohol wipe and let the weld zone dry.
Hazard
Contamination causing a weak fusion joint
Who might be harmed and how
The fusion operator and people using the pipe
Controls in place
- Keep hands, dirt and unapproved solvents away from the prepared surface.
- Keep the fitting in its packaging until needed.
A clean, dry weld zone prevents contamination from weakening the fusion joint.
POP001A Guide to Electrofusion Assembly and Welding
What the builder asks about Electrofusion welding
Your answers decide which steps, hazards and controls it suggests.
The job
- Is the main isolated before the branch is made?
How it’s done
- What will you stand on to reach the work?
- Which socket fitting are you using?
- How will you prepare the pipe surface?
- What saddle fitting will you use?
- How will the pipe and fittings get to the work?
What you’ve been told
- Who checks and releases the joint after cooling?
- Who checks the branch joint?
What your Electrofusion welding RAMS includes
Method statement
The sequence of the work, step by step. The suggestions are a starting point; you write the method for the job as it will be done.
Risk assessment
Each hazard, who could be harmed, the controls in place and any further action. There is no risk score: you judge each row against the real site, and adding a hazard does not put its controls in place.
PDF draft for review
The document as you left it, for someone competent to check. A download is not approval and not permission to start work.