Many workplaces contain areas that are considered “confined spaces” because while they are not necessarily designed for people, they are large enough for workers to enter and perform certain jobs. A confined space also has limited or restricted means for entry or exit and is not designed for continuous occupancy. Confined spaces include manholes, tunnels, equipment housings, ductwork and pipelines. People working in confined spaces face life-threatening hazards including toxic substances, electrocutions, explosions, and asphyxiation.
OSHA uses the term “permit-required confined space” (permit space) to describe a confined space that has one or more of the following characteristics: contains or has the potential to contain a hazardous atmosphere; contains material that has the potential to engulf an entrant; has walls that converge inward or floors that slope downward and taper into a smaller area which could trap or asphyxiate an entrant; or contains any other recognized safety or health hazard, such as unguarded machinery, exposed live wires, or heat stress.
OSHA’s standard for confined spaces (29 CFR 1910.146) contains the requirements for practices and procedures to protect employees in general industry from the hazards of entering permit spaces.
The rule requires employers to determine what kinds of spaces their workers are in, what hazards could be there, how those hazards should be made safe, what training workers should receive, and how to rescue those workers if anything goes wrong.
Only workers who have been assigned and trained to work in a permit space may do so. Additionally, before workers can enter a permit space, the employer has to write a permit that specifies what safety measures must to be taken and who is allowed to go in.
If employees are expected to enter permit spaces, the employer must develop a written permit space program and make it available to employees. Ventilation hoses provide air and exhaust toxic vapors during confined space entry and a guardrail may also be necessary to protect workers from potential falls.
In addition to personal protective equipment, other equipment that employees may require for safe entry into a permit space includes:
- Testing, monitoring, ventilating, communications and lighting equipment;
- Barriers and shields;
- Ladders; and
- Retrieval devices.
Under certain conditions described in the standard, the employer may use alternate procedures for worker entry into a permit space. For example, if an employer can demonstrate with monitoring and inspection data that the only hazard is an actual or potential hazardous atmosphere that can be made safe for entry using continuous forced air ventilation, the employer may be exempted from some requirements, such as permits and attendants.
For more safety information, contact our offices at Diversified Safety Services.
