By Ethan Davis
a. No person should enter a confined space until all preparations for entry have been completed, the permit has been approved, all conditions of this Entry Procedure have been met, and the entry is authorized.
b. No person should enter a confined space unless an attendant is on duty. The attendant must maintain visual and/or voice contact at all times with personnel in the confined space.
c. All personnel entering confined spaces and all attendants for entry should receive annual confined space entry and emergency rescue training.
d. Personnel using monitoring equipment should be trained in its use and calibration.
e. All electrical shock hazards should be protected by use of low voltage systems and/or ground fault protector.
f. Explosion-proof electrical equipment is required for entry into spaces where potential fire and/or explosion exists.
g. If conditions in the confined space change, personnel should be removed, the changes investigated, lock-outs reverified, and the area re-monitored.
h. If confined space work continues past the initial shift, the Supervisor or Manager should sign the permit, re-verify the lock-outs, re-monitor the atmosphere and record the data on the permit, verify that all other requirements of this procedure have been met, and inherit all of the responsibilities associated with the entry. This process should be repeated at the beginning of each subsequent shift.
i. When the job has been completed, the competent person should verify that all personnel and equipment have been removed from the confined space by signing the permit. This completed permit should then be retained by the Supervisor or Manager for the duration of the job.
j. No one should enter confined spaces without a permit. Violations are grounds for dismissal. The Manager or the Department Supervisor should identify all confined spaces by sign, placard or other appropriate means. He should also identify the “permitted.” Only authorized permitters can issue a permit. The permitter should personally inspect, examine and evaluate the confined space and should assure that all hazards have been identified before allowing entry.
The permitter should discuss the following with all personnel:
(a) Emergency procedures.
(b) What the emergency – standby person must do.
(c) All permits are null and void in case of an emergency.
(d) How to request a re-check of the permit.
(e) What the permit does and does not authorize.
(f) The duration of the permit – one shift (or the duration of the entry, whichever is shorter).
(g) Permit postings. The permitter should post the permit as follows:
(i) The original - at the point of entry.
(ii) The second copy – Manager’s office.
(iii) The third copy – in the Department Supervisor’s office.
(h) The following work rules are unconditionally and automatically the requirements for confined space entry procedures:
(i) Ventilation should be of adequate volume to safely maintain the airflow within the confined space. (It is the responsibility of the Company to prove the calculations of the airflow volume).
(ii) It is the responsibility of the Department Supervisor to immediately report unsafe conditions.
(iii) A flashlight should be carried by each person entering a confined space.
(iv) Lighting used must be explosion proof, 12 volt system or flashlight.
(v) Welding, cutting, brazing, and purging operations require specific requirements – consult with the permitter.
(vi) Chemicals used or transported inside the confined space require specific requirements – consult with the permitter.