Facilities Management Services Feature Library

Operations Engineer's library catalogues editorial features going back five years.

Access to all archive material is free to all, including non-members of IPlantE (the Institution of Operations Engineers) or BES (Bureau of Engineer Surveyors), under the umbrella of SOE (Society of Operations Engineers). However, to discover the many benefits of becoming an SOE member, please click here.

08/03/2024 Legal Report: On the back foot The arbitration process has been the cause of concern across a number of industries in the past. Philip Harris, partner at Wright Hassall, believes it might be time for a re-think » Read More


20/02/2023 Thermal imaging tips and tricks Thermal cameras continue to come down in price and are entering the mainstream industrial world to provide help in maintenance and inspection tasks. However, they are not necessarily as simple to use as they appear, with the emissivity ... » Read More


19/01/2022 Training: practical into virtual While many engineering courses are available online, how well, poorly or not at all do courses with practical content transfer to a virtual platform? By Steed Webzell » Read More


01/07/2014 Court in the act Attending court, whether as defendant, plaintive or expert witness, can be a chastening experience. Brian Tinham talks to INITA's Jim Haire about a recent training event » Read More


05/10/2012 Lifting the bar Case law demonstrates that courts are taking an increasingly tough line with lifting-related accidents, if companies and plant managers cannot prove due process, writes Crispin Kenyon » Read More


08/06/2012 Thorough examination of escalators and moving walks In the second of his two-part feature, Vince Sharpe reviews key elements of SAFed's new guidelines for the safe operation of escalators and moving walks aimed at the competent person carrying out thorough examinations » Read More


05/04/2012 Safe operation of escalators and moving walks SAFed's guidelines for the safe operation of escalators and moving walks was published in May last year. In the first of a two-part feature, Vince Sharpe reviews key elements for owners and operators » Read More


05/04/2012 Is your boiler house safe? As de-manning on steam and hot water boiler plant continues to gain momentum, operators need to consider best practice and their legal duties in respect of operational safety, warns S Moore Holmes » Read More


07/12/2011 Cool and legal Nearly every commercial and industrial building has refrigeration plant. Some is well maintained, some not – until things go wrong. John Cherry updates plant engineers on their duties » Read More


07/12/2011 Playing it safe The October 2011 arrival of new guidance for the safe operation of steam and hot water boilers gives boiler operators and managers up-to-date advice, and recognised training is a key focus. Brian Wall reports » Read More


07/12/2011 The case of Mr S The role of an individual acting as, or on behalf of, a 'competent person' under PSSR (the Pressure System Safety Regulations 2000) comes with serious obligations S Moore Holmes takes us through the case of Mr S » Read More


07/04/2011 Risk-based changes Get it right and the savings can be huge, but get it wrong and the cost is unimaginable. Brian Tinham talks to John Wintle about changing best practice for hazardous plant inspections » Read More


01/10/2008 An inspector calls If you speak to engineer surveyors across the industry, chances are they'll mention two trends - one slightly surprising, the other plain worrying. On the surprising side of the equation, they'll probably mention that only now are some ... » Read More


01/02/2008 Power of the press Power presses, like most big mechanical plant, have been operated subject to regular mandatory inspections for many years. But there's a problem: the approaches taken to those inspections have varied, according both to the inspection ... » Read More


01/02/2008 Money for nothing? There's no such thing as a free lunch - and that holds true for green energy generation, too. Even with wind farms, there is the price of the plant, installation, commissioning, operation and maintenance. There are also safety inspections ... » Read More