Confined Space Entry. My Experience so far.

Transcription

1 Confined Space Entry My Experience so far

2 My Experience so far Complacency to Confined Space working Is the area a Confined Space No company procedures Poor risk assessments A lot of confusion Staff & Contractors Lack of Emergency Arrangements

3 Confined Spaces can be deadly! A number of people are killed or seriously injured in confined spaces each year in the UK. This happens in a wide range of industries, from those involving complex plant to simply storage vessels. Those killed include not only people working in the confined space but those who try to rescue them without proper training and equipment. Over 60% of people killed in confined space incidents are trying to rescue

4 Is the area a Confined Space?

5 Definition of Confined Space It must be a space which is substantially (though not always entirely) enclosed and One or more of the specified risks must be present or reasonably foreseeable

6 Is the area a Confined Space

7 Confined Spaces Regulation 1997 The Confined Spaces Regulations 1997 were made under the Health & Safety at Work Act 1974 L101 Safe work in Confined Spaces contains Approved Code of Practice & Guidance on the duties in the Confined Space Regulations

8 What is the meaning of Confined Space Any place, including any chamber, tank, vat, silo, pit, trench, pipe, sewer, flue, well, or other similar space in which, by virtue of it s enclosed nature, there arises a reasonably foreseeable specified risk Confined Spaces Regulations 1997

9 Preventing the need for entry work in confined spaces Confined Spaces Regulations 1997 Regulation 4 No person at work shall enter a confined space to carry out work for any purpose unless it is not reasonably practicable to achieve that purpose without such entry

10 Preventing the need for entry always ask these question What measures can be taken to enable the work to be carried out without the need to enter the confined space? Can we test the atmosphere or sample the contents from the outside? Can we clean from outside? Can we clear the blockage remotely? Can we view what s happening inside without going in?

11 Emergency Arrangements Confined Spaces Regulations 1997 Regulation 5 Without prejudice to Regulation 4 no person at work shall enter or carry out work in confined space unless there have been prepared in respect of the confined space suitable and sufficient arrangements for the rescue of persons in the event of an emergency, whether or not arising out of a specified risk

12 Confined Space Entry Part 2 Specified Risks & Hazards

13 Specified Risks Serious injury to any person at work arising from a fire or explosion; The loss of consciousness of any person at work arising from an increase in body temperature; The loss of consciousness or asphyxiation of any person at work arising from gas, fume, vapor or the lack of oxygen; The drowning of any person at work arising from an increase in the level of liquid; or The asphyxiation of any person at work arising from a free flowing solid or the inability to reach a respirable environment due to entrapment by a free flowing solid;

14 Oxygen Deficiency 21% Oxygen in the air we breath 19.5% Oxygen is the minimum safe entry level Lets consider some of the causes of oxygen deficiency Biological processes Corrosion inside steel tanks and vessels Chemical reactions Purging of the confined space with an inert gas Burning operations

15 ACCIDENT Entry into rusty chamber kills two! Two persons collapse after entering a buoyancy tank on a barge The tank had not been ventilated or gas tested prior to entry They suffocated due to low oxygen levels in the tank caused by corrosion of the steel structure

16 ACCIDENT Consider all types of hazards when planning a job Pipe opening where a confined space was inadvertently created

17 What can go wrong

18 Area used to store equipment

19 C0 2 Readings 9.69% Vol & Oxygen 16.% Vol

20 Oxygen Enrichment 23% There is an increased risk of fire and explosion from high oxygen levels, at these levels, they can be expected to be more violent and intense Higher than normal oxygen levels can result from oxygen leakage during oxy/acetylene welding operations

21 Flammable atmospheres A gas mixture is flammable when the concentration of flammable material in air is within the Lower and the Upper Explosive Limits UEL Upper Explosive Limit LEL Lower Explosive Limit

22 Flammable Atmospheres (continued) What can cause such atmospheres to occur Previous processing or storage Leaks from adjoining plant or processes Leak from oxygen cylinders Ignition of airborne flammable contaminants Residues left in tanks, vessels etc, or remaining on internal surfaces which can give off gas, fume or vapour

23 Toxic Atmospheres

24 Toxic Atmosphere (continued) Previous processing or storage Sludge or other deposits disturbed Adjoining plant not being isolated Leaks into trenches and pits in contaminated land, old refuse tips and old gas works Welding, flame cutting, brush and spray painting Adhesives and solvents Hot works on exterior surfaces, exhaust fumes from mobile plant

25 ACCIDENT Small semi confined space! A workman was relaying the floor tiles in a small cupboard in an office corridor using a solvent based quick setting adhesive. Overcome by the fumes he fell face down into the adhesive where his face stuck and unconscious he died. Small spaces such as cupboards etc. are not always recognised as confined spaces Remember that entry is the action by which a person passes through an opening into a permit required confined space and it does not have to be a complete body entry

26 ACCIDENT Operator killed checking the oil! Operator put his head into the tank opening of a barge to check the oil level. He was overcome by the fumes and fell into the tank and was killed

27 ACCIDENT Young worker found staggering around inside a tank!

28 Ingress or presences of liquids Is the confined space empty How deep is any standing liquid in the space What type of liquids are present in the space Is the space directly or indirectly at risk of flooding Could changes in weather conditions result in flooding Is there a means of escape in the event of flooding

29 Solid materials which can flow Engulfment can occur when a person works amid large quantities of fine solids such as salt sugar, catalyst and grains Free flowing solids have the potential to bury and drown individuals The risk is more acute in storage compartment that have sloping floors Uneven floors can cause a person to trip triggering a cave in with disastrous consequences When digging through fine solids, take care that no high walls are left ready to collapse when disturbed

30 Presence of excessive heat Poor ventilation PPE Steam Cleaning Hot Works Weather Conditions Plant not being allowed to cool excessive heat can cause Heat Stress or Heat Stroke

31 Other Hazards Slippery, corroded or uneven walking surfaces Obstacles within the space Poor lighting and visibility Electricity an mechanical plant Excessive noise Falling objects Falling from height Bacteriological risks (Legionnella etc) Animals (Rats, Snakes in pits, tunnels etc)

32 Confined Space Entry Part 3 Atmosphere Monitoring

33 Atmosphere testing

34 Gas Characteristics HSE Workplace Exposure Limits EH40 LEL = Lower explosion limits UEL = Upper explosion limits LTEL = Long-Term exposure limits 8-hours STEL = Short-Term exposure limits 15 minutes TWA = Time waited average

35 Types of Vapours and Gases

36 Confined Space Entry Part 4 Risk Assessment

37 The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 Regulation 3 States that you must carry out a suitable and sufficient assessment of the risks for all work activities for the purpose of deciding what measures are necessary for safety. The risk assessment will include consideration of The Task The Working Environment Working Tools & Materials The Suitability of those carrying out the task Arrangements for emergency rescue

38 Regulation 3 (continued) The assessment will need to identify the risks to those entering or working there, and also any others, for example, other workers including contractors and the general public in the vicinity who could be affected by the work to be undertaken. The assessment must be carried out by a competent person This is someone with sufficient experience of, and familiarity with the relevant processes, plant and equipment so that they understand the risks involved and can devise necessary precautions to meet the requirements of the confined space regulations.

39 Safety Watch Person

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42 Confined Space Entry Part 5 Emergency Arrangements

43 Emergency Arrangements Regulation 5 ACOP Rescue and resuscitation equipment Raising the alarm and rescue Safeguarding the rescuers Fire safety Control of plant First aid reliance on the emergency services alone will not be sufficient to comply with these regulations

44 The Three Types of Rescue Self Rescue Non-entry Rescue Entry Rescue

45 First Aid Have you provided for the appropriate emergency first aid equipment and trained first aiders to deal with Managing an incident The priorities of first aid Treatment of an unconscious casualty Resuscitation Shock Choking Seizures Bleeding Common workplace injuries.

46 Public Emergency Services You will need arrangements in place for rapid notification of the emergency services They will need all known information about the conditions and risks before entering the confined space This information must be available at the scene of incident Is clear access to site available

47 Rescue Training Consider the likely causes of an emergency on your own site Testing the site or other local emergency procedures including the initiation of emergency response Use of rescue equipment Emergency first aid Liaison with local emergency services

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