BLOC training - stuff the BLOC should know about¶

This is still at draft stage. A broad overview is given below. Sample run plans for training sessions:

• 2013 training session
• 22 Jan. 2015: ISIS and DSA
• 6 Mar. 2015: Hall and Magnets
• 8 Mar. 2015: Target and ISIS Beam - postponed

Scope - stuff the BLOC should know about¶

Hall A/C Units

• Turning on/off
• Scrolling through alarms
• Refrigerant / ODH

Decay Solenoid Cryo

• Error messages
• Heat Exchanger drip tray drain
• Cooling the current leads
• DS turret fan
• (Air)
• (A/C)

Decay Solenoid Power Supply

• Current lead dependency, turning on
• Controls
  • Expert EDM panel, startup/shutdown
  • VME PC
• Shifter DS training completed

Proton Absorbers

• Controls
• Operation and fault finding
  • Cycle slabs
• Shifter training completed

Diffuser

• Controls
• Operation and fault finding
  • Cycle irises; confirm mask matches individual settings (FPGA confusion)
• Shifter responsibilities and training

Beamstop

• Safety pre-requisites, permissions, RA/MS etc.
• Mechanical Beamstop removal/replacement and protocol
• Swapping power packs
• Shifter beamstop training completed

Conventional / "Beamline" Magnets

• Safety pre-requisites, permissions, RA/MS & ATW, etc.
• Cooling water
  • Temperatures
    • Control panel outside MLCR
  • Trench water system
    • Conductivity
    • Magnet Checklist
  • Turning off
• Electricity
  • Switch PSUs on/off
  • PPS interlocks
• Status Panel and Magnet-On Lamp check
• Controls
  • Beamline summary, manual control EDM panels and interlocks
  • Ramp rates and stability
  • VME PC
• POMPOMs
  • changing and spares
  • troubleshooting
• Moving dipoles
• Shifter magnet training completed

Air

• Receiver
  • Purpose
  • Monitoring
• Booster
  • Purpose
  • Monitoring

Target

• Safety pre-requisites, permissions, RA/MS etc.
• How it works (e.g. from the poster)
  • Gate Valve
• Run-in and R78
• Beamloss (numbers, aims) and control variables; checking the beambump is active
• ISIS trips: severity and levels
• Control System and Vac Rack
  • Target power-up (and power-down)
  • Basic (shifter-level) operation
  • Monitoring plots and reports
  • Checking the Target is operating to the correct spill
• Laser levels
  • Monitoring and tweaking
• Frame up/down
  • Target PPS and BPS interactions
• Dealing with a BPS trip
• Target tuning
  • Finding the ISIS beam
  • Correcting the delays
• Controls
  • VME PC
  • RATS daemon crash and restart
• Gate Valve procedure
• MOM Walkabout checklist items
• Shifter responsibilities and training / Overnight Standby

PPS

• Shifter PPS training completed
• Which permits are needed for what
• Reading the crates by eye
• BL/BOBs Test Switch location
• DSA issues
• SC Magnet and other PPS featurettes

Response procedure - what to do when MLCR rings up in a panic...

ISIS (synchrotron) access

• procedure and requirements
• geography (ISIS/VacRack/R78)
• (POMPOM sensor)

DSA access

• procedure and requirements
• geography
• (POMPOM sensor)

Spares locations / swipe permissions

• Hall
• R5.4 RF Hall (swipe)
• R76
• R9
• R78 (swipe)

BLOC phone

• charger and battery life
• privacy rules

For the conventional magnets, Decay Solenoid and Beamstop BLOCs are expected to have completed the formal shifter training, as they will need to be able to give such training themselves.

For the target, the BLOC target training will cover what is needed for training shifters.

BLOCs will need to use the PPS to get permits for test purposes or to make Controlled Entries; hence they will need the full PPS user training.

Requirements - what is expected from people signing up¶

The formal definition of what a BLOC does when on duty is at BLOCresponsibilities.

People signing up as BLOCs are of course expected to carry out those responsibilities; in order to do so

• they must have completed the formal MICE Shifter training [ 1 ]
• they must have completed the BLOC training, and any refresher sessions as advised
• they will need to get to and be on site at RAL during awkward and unsociable hours
  • this includes occasional stints outside of principal MICE running periods [ 2 ]
• they must be familiar with relevant MICE equipment, the geography of the MICE Hall, and MICE Operations that utilise the beamline
• they must be able to access the MICE equipment in the ISIS vault - i.e. know where it is, and understand the attendant access and safety (e.g. Radiation Protection) protocols

The quid pro quo is that

• You cannot be scheduled as BLOC and as Shifter (or MOM or DC) at the same time
• The On-Call aspect will now be given more prominence - you are encouraged to stop working and leave site when not actually required in the MLCR!

Footnote 1¶

There's been a lot of discussion regarding this requirement. In short:

• recent run plans have in effect scheduled the BLOC as an acting shifter, hence the Shifter qualification has become de facto mandatory
• significant parts of the shift training (e.g. PPS and Magnet Controls) are also a BLOC pre-requisite. For Step 1 the non-Beamline aspects of shifter training are a minor part anyway, so it's easier to require completed Shifter training rather than defining/checking some subset of tickboxes.

This will be reviewed once concrete plans for Step IV exist.

Footnote 2¶

For example, regular maintenance activities include:

• monthly target test
• annual Magnet-On Lamp test
• annual POMPOM system checks