project

Confined spaces eyed on U.S. construction sites

Tuesday, October 20, 2015

Employers on U.S. construction sites will have 12 more weeks to fully implement new rules governing work in confined spaces before the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) begins issuing citations for non-compliance. The OSHA recently pushed the enforcement date to January 8, 2016, even though the standard went into effect in August 2015.

The new standard introduces a permit system for entry to confined spaces, and designates general contractors as the primary overseers responsible for issuing the permits, and ensuring proper safeguards and worker training. Development owners/managers, subcontractors and workers also have responsibilities — all aimed at mitigating risks of work in spaces such as manholes, tanks, vaults, drilled shafts, silos, pits or ducts.

The new rules require every employer to competently inspect the jobsite to identify confined spaces before work can begin. If such spaces exist, warning signs must be posted and steps must be taken to restrict entry solely to authorized personnel. While work is underway, an attendant must be constantly on duty outside the entrance to the space. Employers must also make provisions for timely rescues, if necessary.

Though dubbed an entry permit, the newly mandated document isn’t bestowed by a regulatory authority, but, rather, is the employer’s self-generated log of compliance with the confined spaces standard. This includes a list of identified hazards and the measures undertaken to control or eliminate them, along with the results of tests and monitoring, and proof of means to detect increasing levels of atmospheric hazards if the ventilation system is not functioning properly. The permit must also state: acceptable conditions for entry into the space; required equipment, communication procedures and emergency protocols; and the names of all authorized entrants, supervisors and attendants.

The OSHA’s extended deadline for enforcing the standard will apply only for employers who have shown good faith in their efforts to comply. In particular, employers are expected to have fulfilled the requirement to train workers on potential hazards and the use of protective and emergency equipment.

One thought on “Confined spaces eyed on U.S. construction sites

  1. OSHA recently published their new confined spaces in construction standard. And you won’t believe what General Contractors must now do to comply.

    Read about the significant (and overlooked) new responsibilities for who OSHA calls “controlling contractors” – changes you wouldn’t even know about without delving deep into the preamble for this standard.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

In our efforts to deter spam comments, please type in the missing part of this simple calculation: *Time limit exceeded. Please complete the captcha once again.