OPITO PRODUCT 9004 · COMPETENCE ASSESSMENT
CROER: Control Room Operator Emergency Response
Formal assessment of a Control Room Operator's response to an emergency, conducted in a simulated environment.
CROER is an assessment, not a taught course. Candidates must be declared ready by their employer before assessment can take place.
What CROER is.
When an emergency develops, the control room is where the operational picture is held: alarms, process information, communications and coordination all pass through the CRO. CROER exists to assess, formally and against a common industry standard, whether a person can perform that role when it matters.
The candidate is assessed in the CRO role during emergency situations in a simulated environment, against the standard's three areas of competence: maintaining a state of readiness, controlling critical situations, and coordinating emergency response.
Who it is for.
CROER is for personnel who have been deemed ready by their employer to be formally assessed in the CRO role during an emergency. As with OIMCE, the readiness judgement belongs to the employer and rests on the candidate's training, practice and workplace performance before the assessment is arranged.
Before assessment can take place.
Entry requires a formal declaration and supporting evidence from the candidate's employer, confirming that the candidate has achieved the standard's workplace performance criteria for its first two outcomes and has been deemed ready for formal assessment against the remaining outcomes. OPITO publishes a supporting CRO Duty Holder Declaration document for this purpose.
Candidates also complete medical screening before participating in practical exercises.
How the assessment works.
Assessment takes place across a minimum of two emergency scenarios, with no fixed timings: sufficient time and access are arranged so that every required performance and knowledge criterion can be suitably assessed. A maximum of three attempts is permitted to achieve successful assessment of the two scenarios.
The certificate carries no formal expiry date; OPITO recommends re-assessment at least every three years.
The control room, simulated
The candidate is assessed acting as the CRO in a simulated control-room environment using the Poseidon Simulator. The scenarios present developing process conditions, alarms, emergency information and communications that the candidate must interpret and respond to. An assessor observes performance against the OPITO criteria, with sufficient role players used to maintain the reality of the simulation. Before formal assessment, the candidate is briefed on the criteria and given the opportunity to become familiar with the assessment process and facilities.
Assessment availability.
CROER assessments are arranged around candidate and employer readiness rather than a fixed public calendar. Tell us who needs to be assessed and when, and we will come back with availability.
Preparing for assessment at Poseidon?
Rig Watch Practice™ is Poseidon's own optional practice day, the day before your CROER assessment: familiarisation with the control room and simulator, two practice scenarios and written feedback. It is a Poseidon programme and is not part of the OPITO assessment.
Assessing your control room operators.
CROER is employer-led for the same reason: candidate readiness and supporting evidence come from the employer, whether for new appointments, reassessment cycles or competence programmes covering a control-room team. Start that conversation directly.
No. CROER is a formal competence assessment. Your employer must declare you ready and provide supporting evidence, so the first step is an assessment enquiry.
A minimum of two emergency scenarios, with a maximum of three attempts permitted to achieve successful assessment of the two.
There is no formal expiry date. OPITO recommends re-assessment at least every three years.