How to become an operator
Structurally, the certification scheme consists of three stages: organizational, operational and on-site assessment stage.
Organizational and operational stages
At the first (organizational stage), the applicant submits an application to the certification body with a set of organizational documents (constitutional documents, organizational structure chart, copies of job instructions and information on the applicant’s management education, staff list project, information on the training system, information on capabilities, system of quality and information management, health and safety measures).
At the second (operational stage), the applicant submits documents that confirm the ability of the operator to perform the stated processes (a diagram of the organizational structure of the operational units, information on the education of all personnel, copies of documents on personnel education, certificates of completion of special training (including pre-medical aid), information on equipment and technical means used during the implementation of mine action processes, copies of insurance contracts, information on the availability of permits for dangerous work, copies of quality management system documents (procedures, etc.).
At both stages, the certification body examines the submitted documents, determines the completeness of the provided information and its compliance with the requirements of the national standard, in the case of a positive result of the analysis - issues a decision to pass the corresponding stage, in the event of inconsistencies - notifies the applicant of the need to eliminate them.
The term of consideration of the submitted documents by the certification body is 15 working days at the first stage and 20 working days at the second (of which 5 days are given for checking applications and submitted documents, the rest - for analyzing the compliance of the submitted documents with the requirements of standards in the field of mine countermeasures), the terms of elimination of identified inconsistencies - up to 30 working days in case of deficiencies found during the document check and up to 20 working days to eliminate identified inconsistencies in analysis results.
On-site assessment stage
The stage of the on-site assessment includes an inspection of the relevant premises, areas, equipment in order to determine their compliance with the requirements of standard operating procedures, demonstration of the implementation of the declared processes and monitoring of the actions of the personnel, confirmation of the information obtained at the previous stages regarding the personnel, technical means and equipment, management system the quality of the operator processes.
Inconsistencies discovered during the on-site assessment must be eliminated within 20 working days.
The certification body, in the event of critical inconsistencies (lack of means of communication, personnel not knowing the evacuation procedure, violation of safe distances, missing or improperly worn protective clothing, violation of safety measures) may decide to conduct a re-evaluation on the spot.
Analysis of the received data and decision-making is carried out by the certification body without the participation of the applicant.
Issuance of a certificate
Based on the results of the analysis, the certification body makes a decision, and in the case of positive certification results, a certificate of conformity and a certification agreement are drawn up. The validity of the certificate of conformity is 3 years for the initial certification, 5 years for the re-certification.
Certification bodies notify the secretariat of the National Mine Action Authority of the issuance of a certificate of compliance, which enters relevant information into the List of Mine Action Operators.
The applicant acquires the status of a mine action operator after receiving a certificate of compliance for the declared mine action processes.
The certification body, within the certification cycle, conducts annual monitoring of the operator’s compliance with the certification requirements. If no inconsistencies were found based on the results of the previous assessment, the next planned monitoring is carried out once every 2 years.
All documents required for certification can be found at the link.