4 Hot Work

Hot work

What is Hot Work? Working in the industrial trades, Hot Work is normally defined as any work that involves elevated temperatures with sparks and or flames capable of producing fire.   As you can imagine, working in the trades involves a lot of hot work. Hot work can come in the form of welding, torch cutting, plasma cutting, grinding, and sanding. Almost all aspects of the metal trades involve hot work of some type.

Like many other tasks in the industrial trades, you should follow certain safety precautions and safe practices per OSHA and your company policies to keep yourself and others safe in your work area.  Many factors can influence how you attack hot work and what precautions need to be followed. We will go over a few of these and how you can prevent hot work from harming you, your coworkers, and your place of work. Like many other safety rules, OSHA is going to set the minimum standard and the facility you work at or the company you work for may enforce stricter rules and regulations around hot work.

There are many rules and regulations regarding hot work, and we will go over some of the basics you will encounter. Remember, some of these rules and regulations will vary depending on where the work is happening and who you are working for, and perhaps which state, you are working in.

Why should we be concerned about hot work?  Just like where you are living, is probably insured, industrial manufacturing facilities also have insurance. Many of the rules and regulations companies follow are influenced by these insurance companies as well as OSHA. To keep insurance premiums down, they take extra care and caution to be sure that when hot work must be performed in the safest manner possible to protect their manufacturing facility and keep it running.

Some examples of hot work could include but are not limited to welding, brazing, soldering, oxyacetylene cutting, plasma cutting, grinding, sanding, and any other tool operation that can produce sparks and flames.

Most times when hot work needs to be done there is no substitute. Depending on the environment that you are working in you may need to look for other options that will not generate flame, heat, and sparks.

Where is the hot work happening? In many facilities, they could have up to three different types of hot work areas. Some facilities will have permanently designated hot work areas such as welding and fabrication shops that her design for such work.  They can also have areas outside of these designated areas that hot work can be performed in and the use of special permitting is required to make sure that area is safe. These areas can be split up into two different categories; extreme or high hazard and normal hazard.

In any permanently designated hot work areas there may be no permitting required and generally no special precautions that need to take place. These areas are specifically designed for hot work. This does not mean you should not take precautions though, you should always be aware of your surroundings before starting hot work.  It is easy to become complacent about doing Hot Work in an area where Hot Work is always done, don’t let this happen to you.  Always do an audit of your work area to make sure it is ready for Hot Work to be performed.

In the two areas that require permits, we will talk about some of the items on the permit to assist you in making that work area safe. Here is a very basic example of a Hot Work permit.

Most permits are going to give an area to fill out for the location of the work, the date, job number, nature of the job, who is doing the job, and then which time and date the permit is good for.

In addition to filling out the front page of the permit, there could be other precautions that you need to check off and audit before hot work commences. As you can see in this example some of these items are sprinklers, condition of cutting and welding equipment, cleanliness of work area, combustible materials, all openings, type of construction, any type of work in confined spaces to name a few.

One of the most important precautions is the 35-foot rule. The 35-foot rule indicates that 35 feet from the point of the hot work in all directions up, down, left, and right you are basically at the center of a sphere the reaches out 35 feet in all directions. You need to be very careful and aware of all those areas that are free of combustible materials. This 35-foot radial sphere extends through all walls, ceilings, and floors. There could be small penetrations through these walls, floors, and ceilings that could allow sparks to travel through and start a fire you are totally unaware of.

Most times when a hot work permit is required, it is also required to have a fire watch. A fire watch is a person whose job is to monitor the work area for fires. This person should be trained in fire prevention and how to use fire extinguishers and other means of extinguishing fires. Their job is to monitor the area at a minimum of a 35-foot radius but also any areas adjacent to hot work going on. At times, when work is being performed in an area with multiple levels multiple fire watches may be required.  When the hot work is completed, the fire watch is required to stay after for a predetermined amount of time to monitor the area for any fires. When work happens in an area of extreme danger, they may be required to stay for a longer amount of time.

So how can you make your area safe?

Well, there are a few things you can do though it may not always be practical. Perhaps the hot work you are performing out in the field can be moved to an area that is better designed for hot work. This works well on items that can be unbolted or moved easily to a designated Hot Work area, but not always practical. If you are working in a high-hazard area and are very concerned about starting a fire, is there another way to perform the work that is not involved in hot work? The answer is often going to be no, but there are other times when the answer may be yes. For instance, if you need to cut some metal, you typically use a flame-producing device such as a plasma torch or an oxy-acetylene torch. Perhaps you can use a portable band saw or a hand saw that does not generate heat, sparks, or flame. Again, this may not always be practical and may not always be efficient. But if it keeps that area from catching on fire, it is worth the extra inconvenience.

When it comes time to start your hot work. take that one last look around. If there are combustibles in the area and they can be moved, move them. Try to move them further than 35 feet away to keep that safe sphere around your work area. If the items are too large to move, you may be required to get a fireproof burn blanket and cover those combustible materials.  In most cases, you will be allowed to wet the area with water before hot work. You want to use caution and be sure that equipment and tools sensitive to moisture do not get wet. If there are combustible materials nearby such as sawdust, wood chips, and paper.  Soak those down with water. It is always best to move those items out of the area. If you cannot move them, covering them or soaking them is the next option.  As covered earlier special care needs to be taken regarding floor, ceiling, and wall penetrations. You should always do your best to use burn blankets and fireproof tarps to cover these areas to prevent sparks, flames, and other materials from leaving your work area and traveling further out to start a fire.

Be sure your permits are filled out completely. Fire extinguisher and or water is at the ready and nearby. Firewatch is trained and all PPE and equipment are in good working order.

Common terms used in Hot Work:

Hot Work- Any work that has the ability to create sparks, heat, and flames with the ability to casing ignition of combustible material.

35′ Hot Work Sphere- 35′ in all directions from Hot Work that should be made safe for combustible materials

Fire Watch-A person whose job is to monitor the Hot Work area for fires during and after Hot Work is completed.

Fire Extinguisher-A device used to control, contain and put out small fires.

Burn Blanket-A fireproof cloth or fabric that can be used to shield sparks and flames that could come into contact with combustibles.

Roving Fire Watch- A person who may be tasked with monitoring multiple levels near hot work location.  This would normally be an addition to one other fire watch.

High Hazard Area-This area could normally be very hot, dry, and have highly flammable combustibles as well as limited fire extinguishing abilities.

Standard Hazard Area-These areas are not built for Hot Work but Hot Work can be done safely with minimal prep as long as the permit process is followed.

Temporary Hot Work area-This would be an area that is not typically used for Hot Work but with some planning and prevention can be set up to safely perform Hot Work.  An example would be a temporary shop setting for large welding projects where it is not necessary for a Fire Watch.  These are normally used for short-term work proects.

Permanent Hot Work Area-This area is normally used for performing hot work such as a welding and fabrication shop.  These spaces are designed and build with the intent of hot work being performed there.

You will encounter several iterations of Hot Wok Permits and safety rules.  It is up to you to follow these and keep your work area safe.  Failure to follow Hot Work safe practices could result in a number of undesirable results.