Coaching sessions for work leaders
Work leaders are responsible for the safety of their team members and of any subcontractors while work is being carried out.
What exactly is a work leader?
The work leader is the person who receives the permits to work and the safety documents. As such, they must also be capable of cross-checking safety measures.
The work leader acts as Elia’s contact person for the performance of the work within the contractor’s organisation and is responsible for ensuring that the work is carried out safely, as described in the permit to work. Work leaders are responsible for the safety of their team members and of any subcontractors.
This is why work leaders receive more extensive training than operators. Once they have completed their training, they receive their ‘work leader’ certificates. Work leaders must speak and understand French or Dutch, depending on the language used in the region where the work is taking place.
There must always be a work leader on the site.
Three certificate types
The certificate issued to work leaders varies according to the risks level linked at the activities. We offer coachings for three types of work leaders, based on the type of work overseen by the work leader. The information below provides an overview of which certificates are required for which types of work on or near Elia facilities.-
Profile Full
the “Full” certificate is meant for all works where it is necessary to cut an network element and where the risks linked at the electrical danger are high.
We find is this profile the following works:
- Safety coordination
- Diesel maintenance
- Lighting work in the substation
- Work on the roof
- Fence installation
- Installation of high-voltage equipment
- (De)assembly of metal structure
- Wiring of low-voltage cabinets
- Work on low-voltage equipment
- Civil engineering work
- Earthworks and excavations
- Digging trenches for cable pulling
- Laying links, including end links
- Manual drilling / trenching / test pits
- Machine drilling
- Laying foundations
- Telecom installation in substation and/or tower shaft
- Security intervention
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Profile Light
The “Light” certification concerns all the works where there is no cut of the network element and where the risks linked at the electrical danger are low.
We find in this profile the following works:
- Inspection of electrical installations, overhead cranes, ...
- Roof inspection
- Control of fire extinguishers
- Cleaning team
- Pest control
- Maintenance of green areas on site
- Pruning work near high-voltage lines without disconnection
- Work on sanitary installations
- HVAC work (heating, ventilation, air conditioning)
- Door positioning
- On-site surveyor work
- Drone pilot
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Profile Line
The "line" certification concerns all work which takes place in the electrical zones of overhead lines and for which the risks associated with electrical and height hazards are high.
The following work is included in this profile
- Pruning work under a line with disconnection
- Replacement of insulators
- Painting and/or line work both inside and outside the substation
- Rrection of lines
- Repairs to the tower structure
- Intrinsic safety of pylons
How to obtain certification as a work
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Apply to register
Work leaders must attend a one-day knowledge test&coaching session (T0) for one of the three certificate types every four years. Their badges are valid for two years. This means that two years after their initial one-day knowledge test&coaching session (T0), work leaders can choose to simply take the mid-cycle test (T+2). However, after four years, they must attend another one-day coaching session.
Depending on where you are in the certification cycle, you can register for one of these four services for one certificate types.- Test on Elia’s premises only: if you attended a coaching session two years ago (T+2), you can register for a scheduled test session. This service is free of charge.
- Test on the contractor’s premises only (min. 20 participants): if you attended a training or coaching session two years ago, your employer can hold a test session on its own premises; the test is supervised by an Elia examiner. There is a flat fee of €1,750 for this service.
- Knowledge test & coaching session on Elia’s premises: if it is your first time seeking ‘work leader’ certification (T0) or if you were first certified four years ago (T+4), you can attend a one-day knowledge test&coaching session on Elia’s premises. There is a fee of €300 per participant for this service.
- Knowledge test & coaching session on the contractor’s premises only (max 20 participants): you follow a one-day coaching held by your employer under the supervision of an Elia trainer. There is a flat fee of €3,300 for this service.
Click on Register to register for one of these services and upload your BA4/BA5 declaration of competence and your photo (attention: any subscription that is not compliant will be rejected).
Terms and conditions for the Full and Line profiles:
- The participant must have a BA5 attest provided in the subscription form
- The participant must be able to show a VCA basic attest (or Mase or Sicherheits Certifikat Contraktoren) on demand during the coaching
Tests and coaching for work leaders are only available in French and Dutch.
The registration deadlines are as follows: minimum one week in advance for tests on Elia’s premises, minimum two weeks in advance for coaching sessions on Elia’s premises and one month in advance for tests and/or coaching sessions on the contractor’s premises.
The participants’ names and/or the tests for which they are registered can only be changed on the website, and only if the registration for the relevant session is still open. Once registration for the session is closed, changes can no longer be made. -
Test/coaching session
As mentioned on the main page, your registration is final as soon as you receive confirmation that you have registered. Please bring the following to your test/coaching session:
- your identity card or, if you are not Belgian, your passport;
- a pen or pencil (for coaching);
- confirmation of your registration.
- your VCA basic (or Mase or Sicherheits Certifikat Contraktoren) if profile Full and Line
Please go to reception at least 10 minutes before your appointment time, while also taking care not to be late.
Furthermore, it is extremely important that you not attend if you feel unwell or have symptoms of COVID-19;
Coaching session
As explained earlier, anyone beginning a four-year certification cycle must attend a one-day coaching session.
The session focuses on electrical risks, the specific role of the work leader, the safety documents, and operational dialogue.
In preparation for the ‘work leader’ coaching session, you must work through the following course material (as per your chosen profile(s)) and be familiar with its contents by the end of the session:
- Basic GSIS + GSIL + GSIC -> PowerPoint + procedure
- E-learning Operator
You will find the presentation and the e-learning modules on our website
Participants are strongly advised to spend half a day studying the course material before attending the coaching session.
Programme for the one-day knowledge test & coaching session for the Full and Light profile :
- 8 a.m.: Welcome and introduction
- 8.15 a.m.: Safety Share
- 9.00 a.m.: Questions and answers
- 10.00 a.m.: Break
- 10.15 a.m.: questions and answers
- 12.00 p.m.: Lunch
- 12.30 p.m.: Case study
- 13.15 p.m.: test with 30 questions
The coaching for the Line profile will take place the same day as the Full profile with this schedule:
- 14.00 p.m.: specific theory for line works
- 15.00 p.m.: case study
- 15.30 p.m.: test
Only the participants who have passed the Full profile will be allowed to participate to the Line profile.
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Pass criteria
To be certified as work leaders, participants must score at least 24/30 for the Full and Light profile allocated like this:
- 6/6 for the elimination questions
- 18/24 for the other questions.
If the participant does not obtain the maximum score for the elimination questions, he/she will not be allowed to finish the test and will have to retake the test/ follow the coaching again.
In case the employee has not obtained 18/24 for the intermediate questions:
- He/she will have to take coaching again if his/her score is below 14/24
- Can only retake the Full/Light test (with the elimination questions) if the score is between 14/24 and 18/24.
For the Line profile, the participant must score at least 16/20:
- Will have to take Line coaching again if his/her mark is below 13/20
- May only retake the Line test if his/her mark is between 13/20 and 15/20
Participants must wait two weeks to be able to retake the test and/or attend another coaching session. This is because we believe that participants will need two weeks to work through the material again.
Participants who pass the test/coaching session will be issued with a badge on the same day (if they took part in a test session on Elia’s premises) or two weeks.
This badge will enable them to access Elia’s facilities and carry out work in or on these facilities. It is valid for two years.
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Basic knowledge
Anyone seeking certification as a work leader must have a basic knowledge of the risks present in Elia facilities and the prevention measures used to address them and be familiar with the content of the modules dealing with these subjects.
Depending on the work leader’s profile, this may require knowledge of the risks and prevention measures associated with work in high-voltage substations (GSIS), work on or near cables (GSIC), work on overhead lines (GSIL).
The documents, presentations and e-learning can be found under ‘Course material’.
