• A silo would be considered a confined workspace.silo image by Philippe LERIDON from Fotolia.com
  
  As part of OSHA’s regulations of workplaces, it has created requirements for the entry of confined spaces. A confined space has enough room for an employee to enter and perform work but has few entry or exit points and is not intended to be worked in continuously. Such confined spaces include tanks, storage bins or hoppers.
  
  

Determine if Confined Spaces Exist

• An employer must determine if his workplace has a confined space and if any of his employees will be required to enter it. A confined space requires a permit and other considerations if it contains or has the potential to contain a condition that could cause injury or death.
  
  

Notify Employees

• If a confined space exists and requires a permit program, the employer must notify her employees. This can be accomplished by posting danger signs that warn employees of the existence of a confined space and the need for a permit to enter it.
  
  

Allowing or Not Allowing Entry

• If entry of a confined space is not required, then the employer may decide to prohibit his employees from entering the space by effectively blocking the entry point. If employees must enter the confined space, the employer must develop a permit plan in writing and share it with his employees.
  
  

Atmosphere Testing

• Before an employee enters a confined space, the atmosphere must be tested for oxygen, hazardous gasses and other toxic contaminants. The tests must be done in this order and the employee who will be entering the confined space must be shown the results. If the test results show hazardous conditions, the employee may not enter the space until the conditions are fixed. Periodic testing is required during the time an employee is in the space.
  
  

Ventilation

• Forced air ventilation must be used continuously to clear any hazardous air conditions. The air used in the ventilation must come from a clean source and must ventilate the area that the employee will occupy for the duration of her occupancy.
  
  

Leave if Atmosphere Becomes Hazardous

• If testing reveals that the atmosphere has become hazardous, the employee must leave the confined space immediately. The severity of the conditions must be determined and the employee must be protected from the atmosphere before re-entry.
  
  

Re-Entry of Space

• The space must be certified safe for re-entry before an employee enters the confined space again. The certification must be in writing and contain the date, location and signature of the person certifying the space. This certification must be shown to the employee before he re-enters the space.
  
  

Permit-Required Program

• In a permit-required program, an employer must prevent unauthorized entry of the space, define the hazards related to the space, create a system for safe entry into the confined space and provide equipment to test and ventilate the space properly.
  
  

Permit System

• The permit system must include measures to verify that an employee has a permit and the duration of the permit. The permit must include the reason for the permit, the date and time the permit is effective and the employee who is allowed entrance into the confined space.
  
  

Required Training

• Employees who will be entering confined spaces must be trained in the permit entry program and in the skills necessary to perform their work safely before they enter a confined space.