November 28, 2005—Providing workplace safety guidelines to prevent confined space-related fatalities and injuries, the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) has made available the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Z117.1-2003 Safety Requirements for Confined Spaces.
Exposures to oxygen-deficient environments, harmful substances, or explosive atmospheres are just some of the potential hazards facing workers dealing with confined spaces. A confined space is defined as an enclosed area with limited access, and includes vessels, silos, tanks, or pits. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2004 there were 114 fatalities from exposure to noxious substances and 63 fatalities from oxygen deficiency.
The Z117.1 standard covers confined space requirements in regards to identification and evaluation of a confined space, emergency response and rescue, permit and non-permit requirements, atmospheric testing, isolation and decontamination, lockout/tagout safeguarding procedures, personal protection equipment (PPE), and warning sign requirements.
Approved by ANSI in February 2003, the revised Z117.1-2003 voluntary consensus standard is performance related, and it is not intended to replace existing standards or procedures. For more information or to order the Z117.1-2003 standard, visit ASSE/Z117
