Confined spaces hazards and control

Excavation work and confined spaces - hazards and control... 

The hazards of management-controlled nonroutine work in the process areas must be communicated to affected individuals. The work permit prescribes the procedures that must be followed to get the permit. Work authorization procedures specify lockout/tagout, line breaking., confined space entry, and hot work authorization through clear steps leading to job completion, closure, and return to normal. 

Practices that concern process and persoimel safety such as steps for controlling hazardous energy, vessel entry, line opening, confined space entry, and flame or spark-producing work (hot work) should be addressed in procedures either as steps or as references. 

Construction workers who enter confined spaces can be exposed to multiple hazards, any of which may cause bodily injury, illness, or death. Supervisors and workers required to enter confined spaces must (1) understand the nature of confined space hazards, (2) be able to recognize signs or S3anptoms of exposure, and (3) understand the consequences of exposure to hazards. Hazard assessments and control are a critical part of confined space entry requirements. 

A2. When the site selects hazard controls, does it follow the preferred hierarchy (engineering controls, administrative controls, work practice controls [e.g. lockout/tag out, bloodborne pathogens, and confined space programs], and personal protective equipment) to eliminate or control hazards ... 

Permit-required confined space program (permit space program)—The employer s overall program for controlling (and where appropriate, for protecting employees from) permit space hazards, and for regu-lahng employee entry into permit spaces. 

Risk assessment is an essential requirement of the Confined Spaces Regulations and must be done so that a safe system of work may be determined. The risk assessment needs to identify the hazards present in the confined space, assess the risks and determine suitable controls to address those risks. The first part of the risk assessment will determine whether the work can only be done in the confined space. 

PSM requires each facility to develop written standard operating procedures (SOPs) for each covered process. SOPs should describe the steps of each phase of the operation, the operating limits of the process, how to avoid exceeding limits, safety systems and how they operate, and hazard control for confined space entry and line-breaking activities. 

Today, OSHA stipulates a confined space that is subject to hazards must be classified. These classifications determine what accident prevention and protection requirements apply to that space. The four classifications are Continuous System-Permit-Required Confined Space (CS-PRCS), Permit-Required Confined Space (PRCS), Controlled-Atmosphere Confined Space (CACS) and Isolated-Hazard Confined Space (IHCS). 

F. All site control elements of the safety and health program must be fully implemented as described in the program. The purpose of site control requirements is to ensure that only properly trained and authorized individuals enter those areas of the site with potential hazards, and that, in the event of an emergency, rapid assistance can be rendered to employees working in the exclusion zone. This section discusses the findings of two components of site control the establishment and maintenance of site work zones and the establishment and implementation of appropriate confined space procedures. 

Contract employees must perform their work safely. Considering that contractors often perform very specialized and potentially hazardous tasks, such as confined space entry activities and nonroutine repair activities, their work must be controlled while they are on or near a process covered by PSM. A permit system or work authorization system for these activities is helpful for all affected employers. The use of a work authorization system keeps an employer informed of contract employee activities. Thus, the employer has better coordination and more management control over the work being performed in the process area. 

Safe work practices for hazards control lockout/tagout, confined space entry, procedures for opening process boundaries and entrance control for maintenance... 

Entry into Confined Spaces. In 1993 OSHA adopted a confined space entry rule (93) requiring employers to evaluate the workplace to (/) determine if it contains any confined spaces, (2) mark or identify such confined spaces, and (3) develop and implement a permit program for entry into such spaces. The program must include a permit system which specifies the steps to be taken to identify, evaluate, control, and monitor possible electrical, mechanical, and chemical hazards select and use equipment institute stand-by attendance and establish communications. The reference standard (93) should be studied for details. 

Supportive safety procedures are utilized to ensure that there are necessary controls in place for safe maintenance and repairs that importantly includes nonroutine hazardous work. These procedures encompass rules governing lockout and tagout, confined space entry, elevated work, electrical work, etc. The committee found some minor problems in these supportive procedures and differences among the sites, especially when some of the work is done by subcontractors, who may have their own practices. 

CFR1910.119(f)(4) 29CFR1910.120(d) and (g)(1) 40CFR68.69(d) 4.2.1.3 Safe work practices shall be implemented such as lockout/tagout permitted confined space entry removal of non-essential persoimel from hazardous material areas and site and building access control. 

The employer shall develop and implement safe work practices to provide for the control of hazards during operations such as lockout/tagout confined space entry opening process equipment or piping and control over entrance into a facility by maintenance, contractor, laboratory, or other support personnel. These safe work practices shall apply to employees and contractor employees. 

Contract employees must perform their work safely. Considering that contractors often perform very specialized and potentially hazardous tasks such as confined space entry activities and nonroutine repair activities, it is quite important that their activities be controlled while they are working on or near a covered process. 

Nomoutine work which is conducted in process areas needs to be controlled by the employer in a consistent manner. Hie hazards identified involving the wmk that is to be accomplished must be communicated to those doing the work, but also to those operating personnel whose work could affect the safety of the process. A work authorization notice or permit must have a procedure that describes the steps the maintenance supervisor, contractor representative, or other person needs to follow to obtain the necessary clearance to get the job started. The work authorization procedures need to reference and coordinate, as applicable, lockout/tagout procedures, line breaking procedures, confined space entry procedures, and hot work authorizations. This procedure also needs to provide clear steps to follow once the job is completed in order to provide closure far those that need to know the job is now completed and equipment can be returned to normal. 

Attachments to the JSA can include any permits or documents necessary to control the hazards specified within the JSA (e.g., confined-space entry permits, excavation and trenching permits). 

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