Jan 7, 2016
When Oregon re-wrote its confined space rules last year, one issue of interest among those attending the stakeholder’s meeting hosted by OROSHA, was the question of fall hazards and permit spaces. In other words, if you had a pit twenty feet deep and the only hazard was posed by using a fixed ladder to enter this pit, would the fall hazard be serious enough to make the confined space a permit space?
Nov 4, 2015
Few topics elicit as much confusion as the reclassification of permit-required confined spaces, also referred to (more appropriately as using alternate entry procedures). People want to know if we should control hazards or eliminate them?
Jul 28, 2015
On a construction site we often need to position some workers above the ground and others below. So we often find scaffolds erected near excavations. While no one would intentionally place a scaffold leg on the lip of an excavation both the excavation competent person and the scaffold competent person (yes, both scaffolds and excavations require competent persons) should be able to answer the question: how close is too close?
Jun 24, 2015
If a fall arrest anchor can’t withstand the forces generated, nothing else matters. But when a worker clips in, how can they be assured that the anchor will function if and when it’s needed? This is essentially a quality assurance question and assuring quality requires a variety of processes, none of which are complicated but each are required to make the system work. In this blog we have broken the processes down into various steps with the focus on fall arrest anchors.
June 2, 2015
For the last five or so years we have enjoyed considerable success with Version 3 of our Confined Space Entrant, Attendant, and Entry Supervisor curriculum. Nonetheless, we are excited to release Version 4.
May 27, 2015
In this post I’d like to review the basic requirements for the new Federal OSHA confined space rules for construction (§1926.1200 through 1213). This is intended for people who already have a basic understanding of the confined space rules for general industry (§1910.146) and are curious about the added requirements (none were taken away) that will apply to construction activities.
May 20, 2015
In both Oregon and nationally we have seen changes to the rules governing entry into confined spaces. None of the changes have anything to do with how we identify, evaluate, and safely enter into confined spaces. But there are important changes to the scope of who must comply with these rules and the types of documentation they must maintain. In addition, both sets of rules changed the reclassification process.
May 13, 2015
How much force can a trench cave-in impart on the human body? And what are the health effects? When we think about the damage that a cave-in can do, we tend to think exclusively in terms of how much soil weighs and how hard it will press on the worker. It’s a fairly simple calculation. Take the volume of soil that’s fallen, multiply that by the soil weight, and there you have it. But this analysis, although eye-opening, doesn’t present a complete picture because it only looks at the forces present once the soil is laying on you.
Mar 3, 2015
Does your facility require a rescue team? What OSHA standards require some kind of emergency response procedures? If your facility needs some level of emergency response, how do you develop these capabilities? What types of procedures, equipment, and training is needed? Or should it be out sourced?
Feb 16, 2015
After years of comments, proposals, discussions, edits, issuances, retractions, amendments, and related activities, OROSHA has issued its Confined Space Rule: OAR 437-002-0146. The permit space rules became effective for general industry on January 1, 2015 and will become effective for construction on March 1, 2015. Will your location be in compliance with Oregon’s new rules? What does it mean to Oregon employers? If you were in compliance with the Federal rules (1910.146) will you be in compliance with this one?
Jan 19, 2015
When you are hanging in a harness the leg straps cut off this return flow. Blood pools in the legs where the tissues scrub out all the oxygen and load it up with metabolic waste products. With this reduction of blood circulating in the body, the heart compensates by speeding up the heart rate to maintain blood flow to the brain. How long does this process take? It depends on many factors.
Jun 27, 2014
Would you work at the toe of a nine-foot vertical wall of dirt with no protective system? Hopefully your answer is ‘no.’ But what if you received a letter from a soils engineer who had evaluated the composition of the dirt and declared it safe? Is an excavation safe because a soil engineer says it is?
Jun 23, 2012
A few weeks ago a compliance officer from Oregon OSHA called. She had been having a discussion with her co-workers and they were at a bit of a impasse. They were considering the following scenario: A four-foot trench with two feet of spoil pile, but in this case the pile was right up against the trench lip and had not been set back two feet from the lip as required by the code.
Nov 7, 2011
Recently OROSHA released the text of of proposed changes to the confined space standards rules. Their goal is to bring construction under the same standards as general industry. The proposed rules can be found here:
http://www.orosha.org/pdf/notices/proposed2011/propchgs_conf_sp.pdf
Aug 15, 2011
Last Sunday while skimming the business section of our local newspaper (Eugene’s Register Guard), I came across an article on training wind turbine workers so that they can avoid accidents and injuries. A key point in the article was the problem with existing wind turbine safety standards.
Jul 8, 2011
One area of concern for many employers relates to the safety requirements needed when an employee reaches into a permit-required confined space to perform a low-hazard job task such as steam cleaning or collecting a sample. Has the employee made a confined space entry? Is a permit needed? What exactly are the requirements?
Jul 7, 2011
We spend a fair amount of time fielding questions about confined space, fall protection and excavation safety. Most of time people describe a scenario and ask us whether we would consider it safe or compliant. Generally their questions hinge on an activity that is not directly addressed by the OSHA regulations.
Jul 5, 2011
Recently a vigorous online discussion erupted over this question when it was asked on an online message board. When I last checked over 140 people had expressed a wide variety of fact and opinion. The question itself was simple to answer: “No, OSHA doesn’t require an employee to use fall protection when using a scissors lift (i.e., work platform that cannot be positioned completely beyond the base) if the guardrails are installed and the gates closed.” In fact, the scissors lift itself is a form of fall protection which protects workers from the hazards of working from portable ladders.
The question itself was simple to answer: “No, OSHA doesn’t require an employee to use fall protection when using a scissors lift (i.e., work platform that cannot be positioned completely beyond the base) if the guardrails are installed and the gates closed.” In fact, the scissors lift itself is a form of fall protection which protects workers from the hazards of working from portable ladders.
Jun 3, 2011
Certain jobs often call for “intrinsically safe” or “explosion-proof” tools and equipment such as lighting and radios. The purpose of this requirement is ensuring that our equipment doesn’t create a source of ignition which in turn could ignite vapors, dusts, mists, or fibers in the atmosphere.
Aug 17, 2009
Are you at elevated risk for heat stress? During these dog days, heat stress can be a big problem. Heat causes our bodies to undergo physical changes such as changes in our circulation. More blood flows to the skin and less flows to the kidneys and other organs. Also, heart-rate increases to maintain adequate blood pressure.