The NFPA Standards Council has approved the preliminary draft of NFPA 350, and is now open for public input. With non-mandatory language, this guide incorporates the best practices that organizations and confined space professionals have utilized to comply with regulations and standards for the past 20 years since the initial publication of OSHA’s final rule. It also draws on NFPA’s experience with several confined space activities, including hot work, the maritime industry, and emergency rescue operations. The Guide primarily focuses on addressing gaps in standards and providing prescriptive guidance on implementing requirements in existing standards, particularly those found in 1910.146. While the OSHA 1910.146 standard requires verifying a safe atmosphere before entry, the NFPA Guide provides prescriptive guidance on how to do such testing. It includes information about gas monitor selection, calibration, and limitations and tells you how to select and locate ventilation equipment to eliminate and control atmospheric hazards.
The Guide incorporates information on requirements not specifically addressed in existing standards, such as adjacent space hazards and competencies for personnel involved in confined space entry. It also addresses best practices not typically found in regulations and standards, such as change management and prevention through design.
The document is a great step in the right direction towards improving confined space safety. However, the committee recognizes there is still a lot of work to be done on the preliminary draft. We encourage you to take the time to read the full document or those chapters of particular interest to you and submit public input prior to the closing date of January 3, 2014. The committee will consider Every public input carefully at the First Draft meeting to be held between January and June of 2014. To view the document and submit input go to www.nfpa.org/350. You may also want to sign up for email alerts above the tabs to notify you about upcoming meetings and when additional drafts are posted.
