Bowen Basin Shutdown Planning: A 6-Week Checklist for Maintenance Planners

Shutdown windows do not usually blow out on the day. They blow out because something that should have been settled six weeks earlier was still open when the crews arrived.

Here is the access side of a shutdown, worked backwards from day one.

Six weeks out - lock the scope

• List every work item that requires access at height, with its location on the asset

• Mark which items are confirmed and which are conditional on an inspection finding

• Identify the access method for each - scaffold, EWP, rope access, suspended platform

• Flag anything in a confined space, over live plant, or requiring hot work

The conditional items are the ones that hurt. Decide now who does the repair if an inspection finds one, because deciding during the window costs you the window.

Five weeks out - qualify the contractors

• Confirm IRATA membership and the level mix for each crew

• Confirm trade qualifications for the work itself, not just the access

• Sight insurance certificates of currency

• Check inductions - who is already inducted and who needs to be

Four weeks out - documentation in

• SWMS specific to each scope, reviewed and accepted

• Site-specific risk assessments

• Rescue plans naming the rescuer for each work area

• Equipment inspection records

Four weeks gives you time to send a deficient SWMS back and get a proper one. Four days does not.

Three weeks out - sequence and interfaces

• Map which crews need the same space at the same time, and resolve it now

• Confirm isolation and permit requirements per work area

• Agree exclusion zones where work is happening overhead

• Confirm scaffold erection and dismantle windows against the trade sequence

Two weeks out - NDT and inspection planning

• Confirm which inspection methods are required - MT, UT, PT, visual

• Confirm the inspector's certification covers the methods specified

• Agree reporting format and turnaround, so findings can be actioned inside the window

• Pre-agree the repair path for likely findings

More on rope access NDT inspections.

One week out - confirm and brief

• Confirm crew numbers, names and arrival times

• Confirm all inductions are complete

• Walk the access points with the supervisor if you can

• Confirm the contact chain for decisions made during the window

Day one

If the six weeks above are done, day one is a pre-start and a start. If they are not, day one is a meeting.

For crews based close to site, see rope access in Mackay and the Bowen Basin, or how we run shutdown and turnaround support.

Frequently asked questions

Is six weeks enough lead time for shutdown access?

For a defined scope with contractors you already use, yes. For a large turnaround, or a scope involving significant inspection with unknown findings, start earlier - the documentation and induction steps are the ones that compress badly.

How do we handle work that only becomes clear once we open the asset?

Decide the repair path before the window, not during it. If the inspection crew can also carry out the repair, a finding becomes a task rather than a variation and a second mobilisation.

Can rope access and scaffold crews work the same area?

Yes, with sequencing and exclusion zones agreed in advance. Rope access work over an area where scaffolders are working, or vice versa, needs to be resolved at the planning stage rather than negotiated on the deck.

What usually causes shutdown access to run late?

In our experience, three things: documentation rejected too close to the window, inductions not completed, and inspection findings with no pre-agreed repair path.