General Requirements
Confined Spaces, and in particular, “Permit-Required” Confined Spaces may pose significant hazards to employees who must enter them or work within them. The Confined Space Program addresses the types of hazards that may be encountered and the processes necessary to minimize the hazards. Only those employees who have received special training may enter or work in Permit-Required Confined Spaces.

Requirements
OSHA CFR 1910.146

Keys to Compliance for Supervisors

• Only specially-trained employees are allowed to work as a member of a Permit-Required Space Team, working in or near permit-required confined spaces. This information is obtainable at the Physical Plant Control Center.
• Supervisors must review and sign the permits prior to any work done in the PCS
• Supervisors are responsible for making certain that all safety equipment, PPE needed for the job is available and accessible to employees
• Supervisors must oversee the operations and make certain all safety protocols are followed.
• A record of each PCS entry must be kept, as described in the EHS PCS Program.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. What if I have a job to do in a PCS, and none of my employees are qualified?
A. The Physical Plant Control Center maintains a list of qualified personnel; these individuals are “on call” and available as needed.

Q. How do I go about getting my employees trained as members of the PCS team?
A. EHS performs this training. Contact either the EHS Training Coordinator or the Confined Space Specialist.

Q. Why is training so critical for PCS personnel?
A. PCS often contain extra hazards, like toxic environments, that the entrant must understand (and perform appropriate testing or monitoring). Each person on the PCS Entry team has a special role, and must understand and perform that role.

Links to written programs, further information
www.ehs.indiana.edu/worker_safety.shtml
www.ehs.indiana.edu/forms.shtml

 

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