Compressed-Air Works Officer
Supervision of work in compressed air, lock and decompression management, fitness-to-work and medical clearance of workers, logging of pressure and exposure times. Appointed per Druckluftverordnung (DruckLV).
Druckluftverordnung (DruckLV)
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What does a Compressed-Air Works Officer do?
A Compressed-Air Works Officer (Druckluftbeauftragter) supervises work carried out in compressed air, such as caisson and tunnelling work in pressurised chambers. The role is the Fachkundiger of § 18 Abs. 1 Nr. 1 Druckluftverordnung (DruckLV), appointed to lead the work in compressed air and to supervise the working chamber continuously. Only a holder of the Befähigungsschein under § 18 Abs. 2 may be appointed. The officer is the responsible supervisor on site for everything that happens inside and around the pressure chamber, and has the standing to stop a shift when a precondition is missing.
The central task is the decompression regime: locking in and out must follow the times in Anhang 2 to § 21 DruckLV so that workers are not exposed to decompression sickness. Operating the lock is not this role: § 18 Abs. 1 Nr. 4 requires a separate Schleusenwärter, and § 18 Abs. 3 bars the Fachkundiger from that task. The officer controls who may enter, monitors pressure and time of exposure, and records both for every worker. Which decompression belongs to a working pressure follows from Anhang 2, never from a judgement call at the lock. Fitness matters: § 10 DruckLV admits only workers examined by a physician authorised under § 13, and § 9 bars anyone below 18 or above 50 and any work above 3.6 bar. The officer enforces those limits.
The officer also coordinates emergency provisions: from 0.7 bar working pressure § 17 Abs. 1 Nr. 1 requires a treatment lock rated for at least 5.5 bar, plus an authorised physician; workers are instructed under § 12 ArbSchG. They keep the logs that prove each shift stayed within the legal decompression and exposure limits, which are the primary evidence for the supervisory authority and the accident insurer in case of an incident. Locks, shaft tubes and the treatment lock are inspected by an officially recognised Sachverstaendiger under § 7 DruckLV.
Inspections keep turning up the same weaknesses: shift logs completed after the fact, which no longer prove times per person, medical clearances that lapsed unnoticed during continuous shift operation, a treatment lock without a documented function check, and no named deputy for holiday and sickness cover. The written appointment, the evidence of expertise, and a description of the powers delegated to the officer belong in the same file as the shift logs, so that it stays traceable who decided what.
Core duties of the Compressed-Air Works Officer
- Supervise all work performed in compressed air on site under the Druckluftverordnung (DruckLV).
- Supervise the operation of the working chamber continuously under § 18 Abs. 1 Nr. 1 DruckLV; lock operation belongs to the Schleusenwärter under § 18 Abs. 1 Nr. 4.
- Manage locking in and out strictly to the times in Anhang 2 to § 21 DruckLV to prevent decompression sickness.
- Check the certificate under § 10 DruckLV before any worker enters, issued by a physician authorised under § 13.
- Enforce the limits of § 9 and § 21 DruckLV: no work above 3.6 bar, nobody below 18 or above 50, at most 8 hours a day.
- Record pressure, time of exposure, and decompression for every worker on every shift.
- From 0.7 bar working pressure, ensure the treatment lock under § 17 Abs. 1 Nr. 1 DruckLV and access to the authorised physician.
- Instruct workers on the hazards of compressed-air work under § 12 ArbSchG.
- Track the Sachverstaendiger inspection dates of locks, shaft tubes and the treatment lock under § 7 and § 17 Abs. 3 DruckLV.
- Maintain logs as evidence for the supervisory authority and the accident insurer.
When is a Compressed-Air Works Officer required?
Whenever work is carried out commercially in compressed air, meaning above 0.1 bar gauge under § 2 Abs. 2 Druckluftverordnung, the employer must ensure supervision of the pressurised work. This typically arises in tunnelling, shaft sinking, and caisson foundation work where the working chamber is held under overpressure to keep out groundwater. § 18 Abs. 1 Nr. 1 DruckLV requires the appointment of a Fachkundiger who leads the work and supervises the working chamber continuously, together with a permanent deputy. Both need the official Befähigungsschein of § 18 Abs. 2, granted by the competent authority as a rule for three years. Alongside them the employer appoints a Sachkundiger for the daily tightness check, a Sachkundiger for the electrical installations, a Schleusenwärter, two people able to fight a fire and two first-aid helpers; § 18 Abs. 3 bars the Fachkundiger and his deputy from the last three of those roles.
The officer must have the technical knowledge of lock operation, decompression schedules, and the physiology of hyperbaric exposure that the role demands. Medical surveillance of the workers is mandatory: only persons with a current fitness clearance may be exposed, and the responsible occupational physician for hyperbaric work is involved. The employer notifies the competent authority at least two weeks in advance under § 3 Abs. 1, attaching certified copies of the Befähigungsscheine, and keeps the required logs. Locks, shaft tubes and the treatment lock are inspected by an officially recognised Sachverstaendiger under § 7 and § 17 Abs. 3, before first commissioning, after substantial modifications and at least every three years. The appointment and the qualification evidence should be documented and held available.
- Commercial work in compressed air, meaning above 0.1 bar gauge (§ 2 Abs. 2 DruckLV)
- Tunnelling, shaft, or caisson work under overpressure
- Examination by an authorised physician before first employment and yearly thereafter (§ 10 DruckLV)
- Notification to the competent authority at least two weeks in advance (§ 3 Abs. 1 DruckLV)
- Working pressure of 0.7 bar or more, at which § 17 Abs. 1 Nr. 1 DruckLV requires a treatment lock
Where compressed-air supervision applies
- Tunnelling and underground construction
- Shaft sinking and mining
- Caisson and deep foundation engineering
- Subway and rail infrastructure
- Hydraulic and harbour engineering
- Civil engineering contractors
- Specialist geotechnical firms
How CIVAC supports the Compressed-Air Works Officer role
CIVAC gives the Compressed-Air Works Officer a workspace built around evidence and deadlines. Task templates capture the pre-shift checklist required by the DruckLV: lock readiness, treatment-lock availability, and worker fitness clearances. Per-worker exposure and decompression logs are stored as structured documentation with a complete audit trail, ready for the supervisory authority and the accident insurer after any incident. Reminders track the expiry of each certificate under § 10, the validity of the Befähigungsschein and the next Sachverstaendiger inspection of locks, shaft tubes and the treatment lock under § 7 and § 17 Abs. 3 DruckLV. The training library holds instruction material under § 12 ArbSchG. All exposure and health-related records stay on EU data residency infrastructure within the European Economic Area.
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