Disclaimer: Confined Space Hazards And Control Measures has been prepared to help the students who want to make their carrier in health and safety. It is not legal advice. It is not intended to replace the OSHA regulation or OSH regulation.
What is The Confined Space Hazards And Control Measures?
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| confined space |
What 4 things make a confined space?
The area that is considered confined spaces because:
- Partially enclosed but large enough for a worker to enter and perform jobs,
- Limited means for entry and exit,
- Not designed for continuous human occupancy,
- Can represent a risk of the health and safety of anyone who enters, due to one or more of the following
Example of confined space are:
The hazards of confined space,
Many workers
are injured and killed each year while working in confined spaces. An estimated
60% of the fatalities due to:
Four main dangers of a confined space,
- Oxygen-deficient atmosphere,
- Oxygen enrichment
- Flammable
atmospheres,
- Toxic
atmospheres,
- Mechanical or physical hazards (noise, heat/cold, radiation, vibration, electrical, engulfment, entanglement, etc.
- Biological hazards (virus, bacteria, from faecal matter and sludge, fungi or moulds)
- Slip,
trip and fall
What are the important precautions for confined space?
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| hierarchy of control |
Isolation - Lockout, Tagout
Blinding – the absolute closure of a pipeline, by the blind (such as spectacle blind) that is capable of withstanding the maximum pressure of the pope.
Purging and inerting
Removing contaminants from the confined space, using steam or nitrogen is called purging. For example, if a confined space originally contained a toxic gas, should purge the confined space to reduce the concentration of the toxic gas.
Risk Assessment
Work in confined spaces can be dangerous, Need to be aware of the risk and how to prevent them through a risk assessment to devise a safe system of work, should be considered:
- Identification of the hazards
- Who might be harm and how
- Evaluation of the the risk
- Record the findings and
- Update if necessary or condition change,
Monitor the atmosphere
Gas Test: The atmosphere might contain a poisonous substance that could make the worker ill or even cause to lose consciousness. Low oxygen levels (19.5% or less) can cause symptoms such as rapid breathing rate, clumsiness, collapse, emotional upset, nausea, convulsion, coma fatigue, and even death.
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| gas detector |
Ensure adequate ventilation,
Ventilation means the continuous provision of fresh air into the confined space by mechanical means to maintain acceptably
atmospheric level.
There may be an insufficient amount of oxygen for the worker to breathe. There may be an explosive/flammable atmosphere due to flammable liquid and gases and combustible dust which if ignited would lead to fire or explosion.
Adequate lighting,
Confined
space such as silos, storage tank, vessels are some of the examples, need to
minimizing risk through the deployment of explosion-proof and 24 voltage
lighting is vital to ensuring workplace safety.
Using any equipment such as grinding machine, drill machine, etc. inside confined space 120 volt with GFCIs protected plug to avoid electric shock.
Adequate personal protective equipment,
Safety
harness, safety helmet, safety glass, safety boot, reflected vest, safety
gloves are the mandatory PPE for entry into confined space.
Do the entrants require specific PPE should ensure their safety such as respirator (SCBA or airline breathing apparatus) etc.
Instruction, information, training and supervision,
Act 1974 and the management of health and safety at work regulations 1999 that all employers have a duty to provide all employees with suitable and sufficient information about the confined space hazards and precautions (The main findings of any relevant risk assessment), instruction (The precautions need to take to protect themselves), training (company health and safety induction), and supervision (monitoring system) to job properly managed.
Plan for emergency (rescue)
How the
entrants get out of the confined space safely in the event of an emergency?
Emergency rescue
teams (ERT) should available or informed by a supervisor while entrants are in the confined space.
Death often occurs during the rescue. Employees attempt to rescue without the
proper training and get caught in the confined space. Become familiar
with some of the rescue equipment that may be required for rescue such as SCBA,
full-body harness, tripod, winch, rope ladder, lifeline, CPR, first aid, etc.
Must be displayed the emergency contactor number, evacuation route map outside space.
All workers should know the location of eyewash station, manual call point, assembly area and the company written emergency procedure.
The proper communication system in place,
Whatever the system is used and it can be based on speech, a rope signal, the radio, air horn etc. it is important that all message can be communicated easily, rapidly and unambiguously. The radio may need to be intrinsically safe to avoid the risk of explosion if the flammable atmosphere occurring according to Section 500 of US National Electrical Code ANSI/NFPA 70-1987.
The employer responsibility to ensure that a communication system in place before entry into confined space and the standby man is capable of being constantly two ways continuous speech communication maintained.
To maximize
the effectiveness of a communication system there is a need for appropriate
communication skills may need to be provided by training.
A safe system of work
The safe system should take into account the risks that have been mentioned in the risk assessment. The control measures from the risk assessment will be implemented, permit to work system, job safety analysis and method statement should be in place to keep the workers and property safe throughout the project.
