Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Document for ANSI/API RP 755, Fatigue Risk Management Systems for Personnel in the Refining and Petrochemical Industries

API 755-2

FIRST EDITION, APRIL 2016

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Document for ANSI/API RP 755, Fatigue Risk Management Systems for Personnel in the Refining and Petrochemical Industries

0 Foreword

0.1 Are the “shall” statements in regards to work sets and shift duration truly mandatory, or can owner/operators modify these values as they see fit based on risk analysis?

As noted above, the use of API publications is voluntary (or non-mandatory). For API publications, the following definitions apply.

Shall: As used in a recommended practice, “shall” denotes a minimum requirement in order to conform to the RP.

Should: As used in a recommended practice, “should” denotes a recommendation or that which is advised but not required in order to conform to the RP.

1 Scope

For purposes of this FAQ document, the term “employee”, unless otherwise stated, is the person covered by RP 755.

1.1 Does this RP apply to employees that live in company provided housing adjacent to the facility where they work?

No. RP 755 scope says: This document is intended to apply to a workforce that is commuting daily to a job location. The intent is for the document to address employees who commute from home to work.

3 Terms and Definitions

1. Is mandatory training considered a shift?

   
   

   A shift is considered as 4 or more hours worked, regardless of whether the time worked is for training or performing the regular job.

   
   

2. Is a work set only regular scheduled shifts (i.e. 5  8 for maintenance, 12-hour rotating for operations)?

   
   

   No. A work set is defined as consecutive shifts with a minimum of 36 hours off (or 48 hours off for night shifts and 84-hour work sets) before starting another work set. Work sets are dynamic, meaning they are a combination of regular scheduled shifts and overtime shifts an employee works, so the number of shifts can vary from work set to work set. Consecutive shifts are shifts worked without the minimum hours off needed to end the work set.

   
   

3. Are the same definitions for holdover and extended shifts applicable when the time occurs prior to the regular scheduled shift?

Yes. The definitions for extended shifts and holdovers are linked to the number of consecutive hours worked regardless of whether the additional hours occur before or after the regular scheduled shift.

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