Confined Space Entry for Industrial Cleaning: Safety Basics Facility Managers Should Know
Industrial maintenance and cleaning services require special preparation and safety precautions, especially when they require entry into confined spaces. At Sun Environmental Corp., we provide cleaning, maintenance, and repairs for industrial facilities, including confined spaces, throughout New York state, the Greater Philadelphia area, and beyond. Here, we explore what confined space entry safety entails and how we can help.
Key Takeaways
- Industrial facilities often feature storage tanks and bins, pits, manholes, and pipelines, all of which may be classified as confined spaces.
- Government regulations require businesses to take special precautions when dealing with confined spaces, helping to ensure the safety of everyone involved.
- Facilities with confined spaces need specialized programs in place, including written policies, proper signage, and thorough training.
- At Sun Environmental Corp., our experts are highly trained in working in confined spaces, making it easy to trust us for maintenance, cleaning, and other professional services.
What Counts as a Confined Space in Facilities?
Businesses and industrial facilities often have confined spaces, which are defined as spaces large enough for an employee to enter, with limited entry and exit, and not designed for continuous occupancy. Some examples of confined spaces include:
- Manholes
- Storage tanks and bins
- Hoppers
- Pits
- Silos
- Vaults
- Tunnels
- Catch basins
- Pipelines
- Ductwork
- Equipment housings
The compact nature of these areas makes them particularly difficult, and even dangerous, to navigate. Because of this, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) classifies certain spaces as “permit-required confined spaces.” These are defined as areas that:
- May contain a hazardous atmosphere
- Contain materials that may engulf an entrant
- Have walls that converge inward or floors that slope downward, which could lead to an entrant becoming trapped or suffering asphyxiation
- Contain other recognized safety or health hazards
People who enter these spaces must be specially trained and have permits.
What Minimum Confined Space Entry Safety Program Should You Require?
Permit-required confined spaces require extreme care when entering, exiting, and working in them. Because of this, it’s incredibly important that businesses don’t simply attempt to solve the issues without having a dedicated and comprehensive plan in place. These programs are also known as permit-required confined space programs (also known as permit space programs). Having detailed confined space entry safety procedures is imperative to keep employees and their work environment safe.
Industrial facilities that have permit-required confined spaces must have these programs in place. These plans should:
- Include well-documented instructions on the procedures related to the entry of said spaces
- Display proper signage to warn employees and guests of the potential danger
- Contain a list of the employees who are authorized and trained to enter the areas
- Be readily available to their employees and any authorized personnel who wish to reference them
Aside from creating and maintaining the appropriate documentation, facilities need to make sure each employee who may enter these confined spaces is prepared to do so. This is done through dedicated training. OSHA offers confined space training and certification for both confined spaces that require permits and those that don’t. Businesses can also hire professionals from Sun Environmental Corp. to enter their confined spaces if they don’t have trained employees.
What Should Your Rescue Plan Be?
Whether an individual is inspecting a confined space or performing a service inside one, safety is paramount. Because these areas are so constricted, it’s crucial to have a rescue plan in place in case of emergency. If the proper precautions aren’t taken, entering a confined space can be life-threatening due to a lack of oxygen, poor ventilation, or the presence of hazardous substances.
An effective rescue plan begins long before entry, and it doesn’t just consist of calling 911. Your team should be familiar with the equipment they’ll need to perform rescues, and you should even perform practice drills to prepare them in case of a true emergency.
Communication is also important to establish, as those inside confined spaces will need a clear line of contact with rescue teams. Facilities that use devices like radios, headsets, and walkie-talkies should have them charged and readily available in case they are needed. Employees involved in confined space entry or the rescue process should be trained in using these devices.
If a rescue is needed, teams should first turn to the facility’s retrieval equipment. If entry is necessary, only those trained in confined space entry rescue should be involved. After the rescue is complete, make sure to evaluate the space and take note of areas where improvements can be made to help prevent future incidents.
How Can Our Professionals Help?
While you should follow OSHA guidelines regarding safety plans and procedures, Sun Environmental Corp. is a company that you can turn to when it comes to performing services in confined spaces. Our professionals have the proper experience and safety training needed to get into these spaces, provide expert service, and get out without complication, allowing business owners and managers to focus on other tasks and not risk potential injury to their employees.
Sun Environmental Corp. understands the complexities of industrial facilities and their confined spaces. We provide industrial cleaning services to help keep tanks, bins, and other areas free of waste, debris, and other materials. In doing so, we are not only able to help keep these systems working at their best, but we can also help prevent accidents, including leakage of potentially dangerous materials, destruction due to equipment failure, and more.
Our routine maintenance services are designed to help ensure that everything looks and works as it should, providing our customers with peace of mind and helping extend the lifespan of these vital aspects of your business. We can also perform repairs and replacements where they are needed to help keep business going.
Our staff is not only highly trained and experienced in working within these difficult environments, but we also supply them with the most useful tools, technologies, and equipment available to help each job go smoothly.
Find Expert Industrial Cleaning for Confined Spaces Near You in New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey
If you need help cleaning or maintaining confined spaces in your facility, trust Sun Environmental Corp. We have been in business since 2010, and our founders have decades of combined experience in the environmental industry. Our business model is based on a combination of safety, employing experts in the industry, and delivering great customer service, which has helped us build a strong reputation. It’s not just business, it’s personal.
Those in upstate New York and the Greater Philadelphia area can call on us to provide a wide range of environmental services, and our dedication to confined space entry safety makes us an easy choice. We also offer emergency response services to tackle spills and other potentially dangerous situations. Contact us today if you have any questions or want to speak to a member of our team.
Confined Space Entry Safety FAQ
What are examples of confined spaces in an industrial facility?
Examples of confined spaces in industrial facilities include manholes, storage tanks and bins, pits, catch basins, pipelines, ductwork, and more.
Why is continuous air monitoring important in confined spaces?
Continuous air monitoring in confined spaces is vital because it provides real-time data on invisible, quickly changing atmospheric hazards, such as oxygen deficiency and toxic gases. It allows teams to detect danger immediately and enables swift evacuation of employees if needed.
Can Sun Environmental Corp. help my business create a confined space entry safety plan?
Yes, we offer consulting services, where we can help you outline a confined space entry safety plan, ensuring the safety of your team, facility, and the environment.
