A utility with a limited budget must decide which aging assets to replace first. In an asset management program, how are assets ranked?
- By age alone: the oldest asset in the system is always replaced first
- By cost alone: the least expensive replacements are always done first
- By risk: the likelihood of failure and the consequence of failure
- By location: assets nearest the treatment plant are replaced first
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C. By risk: the likelihood of failure and the consequence of failure
Asset management weighs how likely each asset is to fail (from its condition and history) against what the failure would cost in service, safety and money. An old pipe in good condition serving a few homes can rank well below a newer but deteriorating main feeding a hospital, so age alone is a poor guide.
Reference: EPA, Asset Management: A Best Practices Guide (five core questions framework)
An otherwise reliable operator has twice failed to record the required process readings on the night shift. Under a progressive discipline approach, what should the supervisor do first?
- Suspend the operator without pay at once so that the lesson is not forgotten
- Post a notice about the missed readings on the bulletin board for all shifts
- Say nothing for now and note the lapses for the operator's annual review
- Meet privately with the operator, restate the expectation and document it
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D. Meet privately with the operator, restate the expectation and document it
Progressive discipline starts with the least severe step that can correct the behavior: a private conversation that states the problem and the expected standard, with a written record. Later steps escalate only if the problem continues. Public criticism damages morale, and ignoring the lapse lets a compliance problem grow.
Reference: Supervisory management practice; state operator certification manuals, personnel administration
In a permit-required confined space entry, who is responsible for verifying that the tests and precautions on the permit are in place, signing the permit to authorize entry, and cancelling it when the work is done?
- The attendant
- The authorized entrant
- The rescue team leader
- The entry supervisor
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D. The entry supervisor
The entry supervisor confirms that acceptable entry conditions exist, authorizes the entry by signing the permit, and terminates it afterward. The attendant stays outside to monitor the entrants and summon rescue, but does not authorize the entry. One person may fill more than one role if trained for each.
Reference: 29 CFR 1910.146(j) (duties of entry supervisors)