The Occupational Safety and Health (Plant Requiring Certificate of Fitness) Regulations 2024 were enacted under Section 27B of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994 (OSHA 1994), whereby the Minister may prescribe any plant for which a certificate of fitness is required. These regulations come into operation on 1 June 2024.

This application guide is developed based on Section 27C of the OSHA 1994, which empowers the Director General to prescribe the terms and conditions to be complied with.

A steam boiler is one of the plants requiring a certificate of fitness and must comply with installation requirements and obtain a certificate of fitness before it can be operated. For this purpose, a steam boiler must first obtain a design verification from the Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) before it is manufactured, installed or used.

As defined under Regulation 2 of the Occupational Safety and Health (Plant Requiring Certificate of Fitness) Regulations 2024: “Steam boiler” means any closed vessel for any purposes which steam is generated under pressure greater than atmospheric pressure and includes any economiser used to heat water being fed to the vessel and any super heater used for heating steam and any pipes and fittings connected to the closed vessel.

The following are categories of steam boilers that require design verification:

Category 1: Water Tube Boiler, Heat Recovery Steam Generator, Coal Fired Boiler, Waste Heat Boiler, Fire Tube Boiler, High Pressure Boiler, Combi Boiler, Tubeless Boiler, Once Through Boiler

Category 2: Electric Steam Boiler, Autoclave, Steam Tube Oven, Steam Tube Hot Plate

• Alteration of a steam boiler refers to any changes to: 

(i) The design that may affect the strength, integrity, or functional capability of the steam boiler; 

(ii) The safe working pressure and/or design temperature that may affect the integrity of the steam boiler.