Communication, Teamwork and Records
Domain focus
This domain tests communication, teamwork, and records: shift handover, radio protocol, permit-to-work and JSA briefings, stop-work authority, and accurate drilling records. Expect questions on what must be communicated and recorded, and how to avoid ambiguity.
Core rules
- Use closed-loop communication: sender gives a clear instruction, receiver repeats it back, sender confirms. Use standard terms and units.
- Handover must cover current operation, depth, mud weight, pit volume, pressures, equipment status, hazards, and pending tests. Verbal handover alone is not enough for critical safety information.
- Records must be contemporaneous, legible, factual, and signed. Include tour sheets, mud reports, BOP and pressure-test logs, inspection records, permits, and incident reports.
- Teamwork requires defined roles, a pre-job meeting, buddy checks, and stop-work authority for anyone who sees an unsafe condition.
- Report incidents and near misses promptly; record what happened, not blame.
Worked example
A driller hands over mud weight 1.22 without units and without recording a pending BOP test. The reasoning is: the receiver must seek clarification, confirm 1.22 sg, repeat it back, and record the pending test in the handover log. The next shift then verifies the test before drilling ahead.
Traps
Relying on memory or verbal only; using ambiguous units; recording after the shift instead of at the time; assuming someone else has reported a hazard; treating near misses as unimportant.