The Digital Domain has evolved into a world of its own, endless online opportunities have been availed for various processes which were previously traditionally facilitated. Although these methods themselves have not changed much, society has, and it is vital that we also keep up with the times. SAQCC Gas is excited to introduce an electronic Certificate of Conformity (COC) system. The Pressure Equipment Regulations (PER) which were gazetted in 2009 require every gas installation, whether fuel gas, compressed or refrigerant gas, industrial or medical gas, to be assigned a COC upon completion of an installation, repair or maintenance. Gas Practitioners currently buy a COC book to be filled out and issued upon completion of each installation they undertake.
The existence of the COC has been a great way to document and confirm compliance for each installation completed. However, with the increase in fraudulent activities in South Africa, the gas industry has seen an increase in fraudulent COC documents.
We have seen duplicated and fabricated COCs and there have also been instances where a Gas COC book, allocated to a specific Gas Practitioner, has been filled out by someone other than the rightful registered practitioner.
The Dynamics
Each registered Gas Practitioner will have access to a personalised online system from which they can complete the electronic COC and send it to the end-user or owner upon completion of the gas installation, repair or maintenance. Associations and Practitioners will automatically receive a duplicate copy of the completed COC for record keeping.
The Benefits
The electronic COC will help curb fraud. Each Gas Practitioner will log in using their secret coding to access the COC, which means only the authorised person will have access to the COC. The risk of theft is eradicated. With the COC digitalised, Gas Practitioners no longer have to worry about their Gas COC book being stolen or lost. This system is convenient and secure. Gas Practitioners will no longer need to carry their COC book to the installation site, they can simply issue a COC from their mobile devices. Gas Practitioners with an expired license will not be able to access the system to issue a COC. This will increase continuous compliance and ensure only registered persons work on gas systems. Similarly, if a person is not registered as a practitioner, he/she will not be able to access or issue a COC.
Going digital entails discovering new frontiers and using innovation and technologies to push the Association and its objectives further. It is about bettering existing services through new possibilities that bring us closer to our desired outcome, compliance and the success of the Southern African gas industry.
We look forward to releasing the new electronic COC.
SAQCC Gas has identified and appointed a service provider to undertake the design and implementation of the electronic COC system and it will be undertaking trial runs in the next few months. It is anticipated that the system will be up and running before the end of 2019. Watch the space for further details
