1. What is a " confined space"? why 'confined space' very critical under safety matter?

By definition, a worker-accessible enclosed or partially enclosed environment is referred to as a

confined space. Despite its name, a restricted place is not always tiny. There are confined areas
in practically every workplace. Confined areas may be above or below ground. Although it is not
intended for continuous use, employees may be required to enter the restricted space to perform
activities like inspection, cleaning, maintenance, and repair. Entry and egress might be
challenging, and complicated rescue operations can result from a small aperture or a layout with
obstacles. Workers should not be permitted to access such locations without the necessary
training, tools, and procedures are in place. Simply placing one's head over an opening's plane
considered as entering a confined place for workers. Insufficient oxygen, toxic (poisonous) air,
explosive atmospheres, and other dangerous atmospheres may be present in confined places.
Additionally, these areas could have physical dangers that might cause, say, employees to fall,
get buried or crushed, or even drown. The risks might not be immediately apparent. To detect
any threat, every confined space must be carefully inspected. An expert with knowledge of the
limited area and the work that will be done there must conduct these assessments. Listed below
are some of the types of hazards found in confined spaces:

(a) Hazardous Atmosphere

- A confined space must be defined before its environment may be given a danger rating of
HIGH, MODERATE, or LOW. After taking into account the confined space's design,
construction, and intended use, the work that will be done there, and all necessary
engineering controls, a competent person must evaluate the confined space's hazard
rating.
- Workers entering confined spaces frequently die from a lack of oxygen. Both sight and
smell are ineffective in detecting low oxygen levels. You must check the air for this
dangerous circumstance. The brain can be harmed by an extremely low oxygen level, and
within a few minutes the heart may cease.
- Confined spaces could have explosive atmospheres. Three elements are necessary for a
fire or explosion to occur: oxygen, flammable material (fuel), and an ignition source.

(b) Physical Hazards

- Loose and Unstable materials. When sand or grain, which are unstable solids consisting
of minute particles, are kept in enclosures, there is a risk that the material will flow over
the employees and entrap or bury them.
- Slip, trip, and fall hazards. There may be a narrow hatchway and ladders for climbing or
descending in the area that the worker is going to enter. As a result, both entering the area
and staying there put the worker at risk of falling. A ladder's rungs or the floors of tanks
or other moist areas might also be exceedingly slick.
- Falling objects. If access ports or workstations are situated above employees, there may
be a risk of being struck by falling things like tools or equipment in a confined space.
- Moving parts of equipment and machinery. Mechanical devices that can be actuated or
that are not secured, such augers, mixers, or revolving tanks, can be harmful. If the
equipment isn't shut out and de-energized, residual energy—such as gravity or stored
pressure—may also be dangerous. This must be accomplished by adhering to a defined
lockout method that is particular to each piece of equipment and that lists every location
 where a lock must be placed. Unsecured equipment can move, especially if it's out of
balance, even when the power is turned off and the equipment is locked out at control
points.
- Electrical Shock. Defective welding cables, extension cords, and other electrical
equipment can all cause electrical shock. Work done in damp or metal-enclosed
environments might be very risky.
- Substances entering through piping. A confined space's piping may be home to liquids,
gases, or other dangerous materials. The following risks might arise if these chemicals
penetrate the restricted space: toxic gases, burns from hot substances, drowning, being
trapped, crushed, or buried.
- Poor Visibility. It is more difficult for a standby person to spot a worker who could be in
trouble when there is poor visibility, which raises the chance of accidents. Increased light
output is necessary if poor vision is caused by insufficient illumination. (although area
lighting is not always required). It may be necessary to provide the right ventilation to
decrease airborne toxins if tasks like welding or sandblasting make vision difficult.
- Temperature Extremes. Before personnel access machinery like boilers, reaction vessels,
and low-temperature systems, certain safety measures are required.
- Noise. Due to wall reflection, noise created in confined spaces can be extremely
detrimental. Up to ten times more noise can come from a source within a tiny, enclosed
area than from the same source outside. If the noise levels cannot be lowered, when
necessary, suitable hearing protection must be used.
- Risk of Drowning. When entering confined places, they should be completely dry or
drained. The risk of drowning may exist in areas that are not completely dry or drained. It
is simple to understand the danger of drowning in a vat or tank filled with a lot of liquid.
However, employees have perished in little watery puddles. Workers may become
unconscious for a variety of reasons, such as a lack of oxygen, the presence of a
poisonous chemical, or a hit to the head.

2. What are the safety procedure in performing 'confined space'.

It's crucial to keep in mind that if a worker intends to enter a workspace, they should first
establish whether that workspace qualifies as a confined space. Make sure that the program for
confined space hazard assessment and control has been followed.

Confined space dangers must frequently be identified, assessed, and controlled in a complex
way. Consult a trained occupational health and safety specialist for assistance in determining the
risks and creating a documented restricted space entrance program. The health and safety expert
may advise you on how to prepare it so that entering a restricted area is safe, including supplying
the proper air-testing equipment and describing the portable air-moving device and the personal
protection equipment to be worn.
Employers must create and implement a confined space hazard assessment and control program
in order to manage the hazards related to working in restricted spaces. For work in any confined
area, a confined space hazard assessment and control program tailored to the task at hand should
be created.
A confined space hazard assessment and control program should include the following:

- Description of roles and responsibilities of each person or party (e.g., employer,

supervisor, workers, attendants, and emergency response team).
- Advice on how to identify confined spaces.
- The identification and assessment of all potential hazards that may exist at the beginning
of the work as well as those that may develop because of the work activities.
- A procedure to conduct atmospheric testing and monitoring, as required.
- A plan to eliminate or control all identified hazards.
- Written work procedures.
- Training program for all the workers that will enter into the confined spaces.
- The establishment of an entry permit system for each entry into a confined space.
- Development of an emergency plan complete with training and equipment in case an
unforeseen situation occurs.
- An emergency response system.
- Reporting and investigating incidents related to work in confined spaces.
- Record and documentation control.
- Program review whenever there is a change in circumstances or at least annually, to
identify program weaknesses and make any necessary changes to the program.

A skilled and experienced individual should identify and assess all current and prospective risks
in any restricted place before entering it. Analyze both inside and outside of the enclosed
environment.

Testing of the confined area's air's quality: Before entering the confined space, the air outside
the restricted space should be examined. It is important to take care to test the air from top to
bottom and from side to side in the tight space. When a worker is in an area where the
atmosphere has the potential to change, continuous monitoring should be taken into account.

Also remember that every employee has the right to reject dangerous job. Do not enter the area if
you feel it is unsafe to do so. Ensure that all safety measures are in place.

3. Who should perform works in a 'confined space'? Give an example of 'confined space'?

Silos, vats, hoppers, utility vaults, tanks, water towers, sewers, pipelines, access shafts, rail or
truck tank cars, aircraft wings, boilers, manholes, pump stations, digesters, manure pits, and
storage bins are a few examples of confined spaces. Without the appropriate support team in
place, no employee should enter a confined space. A confined space team typically consists of
three people. The entrant, attendant, and supervisor.

The entrant is the first and most at higher risk. He/She requires direct permission to enter from
their employer before entering the area. According to the OSHA (Occupational Safety and
Health Administration) Confined Space regulation, the entrant must:
1. Know the hazards associated with confined space entry, and in particular, the hazards
associated with the PRCS being entered.
2. Know how to use all required equipment.
 3. Know the procedures for communication with the attendant.
4. Know how to alert the attendant of hazardous or prohibited conditions.
5. Know how to exit the space if necessary (that is, self-rescue).

The second party of the confined space team is the attendant. Each PRCS (Permit required
confined space) team must have a minimum of one attendant. Due to their large number of
OSHA-mandated responsibilities, the attendant is perhaps the member of the confined space
team with the most responsibility. These obligations are to:

1. Know the hazards. In the case of the attendant, this can often include using air monitoring
equipment to keep a close watch on the atmospheric conditions inside the confined space
and communicate any changes observed.
2. Know the behavioral effects of the hazards.
3. Be able to identify the authorized entrants.
4. Remain outside until relieved.
5. Communicate with entrants throughout the work period.
6. Monitor and evacuate entrants if necessary.
7. Summon rescue, if needed.
8. Warn away unauthorized persons.
9. Warn away unauthorized persons.

The entry supervisor is the third and last member of a PRCS team that is necessary. The entry
supervisor often works for or is a direct representative of the employer. This individual need to
be qualified and prepared to act as an attendant or entrant if necessary. The entrance supervisor is
in charge of deciding if there are suitable entry circumstances, approving the entry, supervising
entry activities, terminating the entry, and revoking the entry permission. As required by OSHA,
the entry supervisor must:

1. Know the hazards.

2. Verify safe entry conditions.
3. Verify safe entry conditions.
4. Terminate entry and cancel permit.
5. Verify availability and effectiveness of rescue services.
6. Remove unauthorized persons.
7. Ensure acceptable entry conditions are maintained.

It is vital that each team member understands and has the necessary training to carry out each of
their specific responsibilities since confined spaces are inherently dangerous, especially the
permit-required restricted areas that would need a team like this. The safest method for
preventing and addressing the risks that might emerge in these hazardous situations is via the use
of this procedure and these human responsibilities, which have been established through time.
4. What parameters to be monitored when performing ' confined space'?

Anyone operating in a confined space has to be on the lookout for any shifting circumstances
there. Workers should exit the restricted space as soon as there is a monitoring device alert or
any other sign of danger. Use warning signs to prevent unauthorized entry to the confined space.

The attendant, who is also known as the safety watch or standby, is stationed outside the
restricted space and continually keeps an eye on the personnel within. The attendant is
responsible for the following:

- recognizes the indications, symptoms, and behavioral consequences that employees in the
confined area may feel, as well as the nature of the potential risks that may be present
there.
- keeps an eye on the surroundings around the enclosed space and is alert for any dangers.
- stays outside the restricted area and refrains from performing any other tasks that can
conflict with their principal responsibility of keeping an eye on the confined space
personnel.
- keeps in regular two-way communication with the restricted space personnel.
- if a possible threat is found and it hasn't been managed for, orders the urgent evacuation.
- calls for assistance right away in case of an emergency.
- when necessary, is always on hand to offer non-entry emergency help.
- only after taking the strictest safety measures and when another attendant is promptly
ready to take up the attendant responsibilities.

The restricted area should be retested before a worker enters if they must leave it for a brief
period of time, such as for a coffee break or to fetch more supplies for their task. If the confined
space has been continually observed by apparatus that can display specifics of the atmosphere
throughout the period the occupant was gone from the restricted space and this information can
be observed from outside the confined area, it can be re-entered without retesting. The danger
evaluation needs to be done again if continuous air monitoring is not available.

Before closing off a limited place, it must first be confirmed that nobody is within.

The entry permission should be updated with the time of exit after leaving the confined place.