subject: About Specialist Ventilation Hire For Workplaces With Confined Spaces [print this page] Working in confined spaces can sometimes prove fatal, due to poor air quality, temperature extremes, insufficient ventilation, or other hazards such as poisonous substances being in the atmosphere, or dangerous machinery being at too close proximity to personnel. Workers lives are sometimes tragically lost, and those of the would-be rescuers. Also, people can become ill and injuries can be sustained.
Often within a confined space a breathable air quality cannot be sufficiently provided solely through natural ventilation. The services of a specialist ventilation hire company will be needed.
Confined Space Defined
As a definition, a confined space is an enclosed or partially enclosed space that:
Is not primarily designed or intended for human occupancy
Has a restricted entrance or exit by way of location, size or means
Can represent a risk for the health and safety of anyone who enters, due to: its design, construction, location or atmosphere; the materials or substances in it; the work activities being carried out there; and / or the mechanical, process and safety hazards present
Types of Confined Spaces
Examples of confined working spaces include:
Cold storage rooms
Vaults
Silos
Tanks
Culverts
Open ditches
Sub-cellars
Ship holds
Docks
Sewage systems, and
Mines
Typical Case Studies
In the maritime industry worldwide, fatalities and serious injuries frequently occur, often due to corner cutting and time pressures in a deregulated industry. As just one example, in May 2010 two crewmen died on board a Panama-registered log carrier in New Zealand after entering the ship's hold, where it was believed they suffocated due to a lack of oxygen. A third man was airlifted to hospital in a critical condition after trying to go to the aid of the other men, as reported by the website Stuff.co.za
More About Air Quality Testing
In a confined working space too much oxygen can create an explosive environment, and so air and oxygen content must always be within safe limits. Checks must be made (and monitoring performed) to make sure that:
No hazardous atmosphere is present, for example: the presence of toxic or flammable gas or any other type of poisonous fumes, and
All ventilation equipment is operating correctly
What the Law says
By law (the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974), employers are responsible for ensuring the safety of their employees and others. This responsibility is reinforced by strict regulations, states the Health and Safety Executive website.
In accordance with the Approved Code of Practice (ACOP) and guidance on duties under the Confined Spaces Regulations (applicable across most industry sectors), all relevant working environments must undergo a Risk Assessment, and Method Statements must be drawn up, before any confined space is deemed safe for human entry and occupancy.
Surveys are Essential
With companies now more than ever being governed by Health & Safety regulations (not to comply with these can result in heavy financial penalties or even business closure), proper surveys of the aforementioned working environments are frequently being carried out by specialist ventilation hire firms.
Knowing what kind of equipment to supply to each type of application is definitely a specialist task. The creation of a free flow of air movement, the forced ventilation of clean air, controlled air changes at specific intervals, the employment of mechanical ventilation, fume and dust extraction whatever the site requires, the specialist company will perform a thorough site survey to determine it. They will then decide which rentable units would best suit the site (as a long-term hire option, or when rapidly responding to an emergency request from a client).
Peace of Mind for Businesses
Once the Confined Space Risk Assessment and Method Statement has been implemented, the client can enjoy peace of mind knowing that the risks associated with working in a confined space at their workplace have been effectively controlled. Should Health & Safety inspectors decide to do a spot-check, the client can relax, safe in the knowledge that they have complied fully with regulations and have exactly the right hired ventilation and / or extraction equipment on site.
