OSHA GENERAL TERMS

OSHA: Occupational safety and Health Administration

OSHA COMPLIANCE:The act of being up to code with all applicable safety and health regulations.

OSHA INSPECTOR: Employee of OSHA or the department of labor who conducts safety and health inspections.

OSHA NATIONAL EMPHASIS PROGRAM AMPUTATIONS: Targets primarily metal fabricators and machine shops-concern is press equipment, shears , slicers, metal cutting band saws

OSHA NATIONAL EMPHASIS PROGRAM ISOCYANATES: National Emphasis Program to identify and reduce or eliminate the incidence of adverse health effects associated with occupational exposure to isocyanates.Targets primarily auto body and auto repair facilities. 

OSHA FINES RESPIRABLE SILICA DUST: Targets granite countertop fabricators, and anyone doing sand blasting

OSHA FINE: Amount OSHA can penalize you based on severity of non compliance OSHA inspection-Can happen at any time with or without warning

OSHA INFORMAL CONFERENCE: A conference with OSHA designed to show corrective action in order to get a reduction in fines.

OSHA ABATEMENT: After a fine takes place a company normally has 15 days to show that they have taken corrective action or the fine will increase.

FAILURE TO ABATE:The company did not show that they had corrected the violation within 15 days or within the time period allowed by OSHA

CORRECTIVE ACTION WORKSHEET: A sheet that must be filled out showing how a company has corrected the violation in question

OSHA 300 FORM: A form that must be filled out any time there is a lost time accident. Must be posted for 2 weeks every February

JOB SAFETY POSTER: Mandatory posting showing the employers obligation to a healthy and safe workplace under the OSHA act.

RECORDKEEPING: Rule requiring employers to notify OSHA when an employee is killed on the job or suffers a work-related hospitalization, amputation or loss of an eye. 

SDS/SDS SHEETS: Material Safety data/Standard data sheets-describe the health hazards of all chemicals in use and how to work with those chemicals safely.

HAZCOM/GHS: Chemical safety regulation-GHS is the new version of the regualtion

WRITTEN HAZARD COMMUNICATION PROGRAM: A safety manual containing all of the companies policies and procedures relative to chemical safety

HMIS LABELS: Health, flamability , and reactivity label that must go on all secondary chemical containers

HAZCOM/GHS TRAINING: Mandatory by law for all employees on an annual basis

HEXAVALENT CHROMIUM INSPECTIONS: Targets primarily machine shops, metal fabricators, and metal platers. 

LOCKOUT/TAGOUT: OSHA regulation which mandates that any time you are do maintenance, repair, or servicing of equipment; the machine must be locked out and tagged out at its main power source

ENERGY CONTROL PLAN: A detailed safety manual showing the companies policy on locking out each and every fixed piece of machinery in the workplace

LOCKOUT/TAGOUT TRAINING: Mandatory by law on an annual basis for all employees on the shop floor

LOCKOUT/TAGOUT DEVICES: Padlocks, do not operate tags, plug lockouts, breaker lockouts, valve lockouts
PPE-personal protective equipment

HAZARD ASSESSMENT: A determination of a companies hazards relative to the PPE regualtion

PPE REGULATION: Personal protective equipment regulation PPE training-Mandatory by law on an annual basis


OSHA FORKLIFT SAFETY REGULATION

Center of gravity
is the point on an object at which all of the object's weight is concentrated. For symmetrical loads, the center of gravity is at the middle of the load.

Capacity
The maximum amount of volume or weight that can be safely contained or handled. The capacity of a PIT is listed on a metal plate that is attached to the vehicle.

Counterweight
is the weight that is built into the truck's basic structure and is used to offset the load's weight and to maximize the vehicle's resistance to tipping over.

Date Plate
A metal plate affixed to the vehicle by the manufacturer that contains information such as the weight of the vehicle.

Dynamic Stability
A forklift's ability to stay upright while in motion. When the vehicle is moving, braking, turning corners, lifting, tilting, or otherwise moving, various forces can act on the load and vehicle to make it less stable and more likely to tip over.

Forklift
A type of powered industrial truck that has two prongs on the front for lifting pallets of material. Forklifts are one of the most common types of PIT.

Fulcrum
is the truck's axis of rotation when it tips over.

Grade
is the slope of a surface, which is usually measured as the number of feet of rise or fall over a hundred foot horizontal distance (the slope is expressed as a percent).

Lateral stability
is a truck's resistance to overturning sideways.

Line of action
is an imaginary vertical line through an object's center of gravity.

Load center
is the horizontal distance from the load's edge (or the fork's or other attachment's vertical face) to the line of action through the load's center of gravity.

Longitudinal stability
is the truck's resistance to overturning forward or rearward.

Mast
the vertical portion of the lift mechanism that raises the load into the air.

Moment
is the product of the object's weight times the distance from a fixed point (usually the fulcrum). In the case of a powered industrial truck, the distance is measured from the point at which the truck will tip over to the object's line of action. The distance is always measured perpendicular to the line of action.

Stability Triangle
the area on a forklift in which the load must be suspended in order for the forklift not to tip. The vehicle's center of gravity is within the stability triangle.

Track
is the distance between the wheels on the same axle of the truck.

Vertical Stability Line
an imaginary line drawn through the vehicle's center of gravity and the load's center of gravity.

Wheelbase
is the distance between the centerline of the vehicle's front and rear wheels.

 

OSHA BLOODBORNE PATHOGENS

Assistant Secretary means the Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health, or designated representative.

Blood means human blood, human blood components, and products made from human blood.

Bloodborne Pathogens means pathogenic microorganisms that are present in human blood and can cause disease in humans. These pathogens include, but are not limited to, hepatitis B virus (HBV) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

Clinical Laboratory means a workplace where diagnostic or other screening procedures are performed on blood or other potentially infectious materials.

Contaminated means the presence or the reasonably anticipated presence of blood or other potentially infectious materials on an item or surface.

Contaminated Laundry means laundry which has been soiled with blood or other potentially infectious materials or may contain sharps.

Contaminated Sharps means any contaminated object that can penetrate the skin including, but not limited to, needles, scalpels, broken glass, broken capillary tubes, and exposed ends of dental wires.

Decontamination means the use of physical or chemical means to remove, inactivate, or destroy bloodborne pathogens on a surface or item to the point where they are no longer capable of transmitting infectious particles and the surface or item is rendered safe for handling, use, or disposal.

Director means the Director of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, or designated representative.

Engineering Controls means controls (e.g., sharps disposal containers, self-sheathing needles, safer medical devices, such as sharps with engineered sharps injury protections and needleless systems) that isolate or remove the bloodborne pathogens hazard from the workplace.

Exposure Incident means a specific eye, mouth, other mucous membrane, non-intact skin, or parenteral contact with blood or other potentially infectious materials that results from the performance of an employee's duties.

Handwashing Facilities means a facility providing an adequate supply of running potable water, soap, and single-use towels or air-drying machines.

Licensed Healthcare Professional is a person whose legally permitted scope of practice allows him or her to independently perform the activities required by paragraph (f) Hepatitis B Vaccination and Post-exposure Evaluation and Follow-up.

HBV means hepatitis B virus.

HIV means human immunodeficiency virus.

Needleless systems means a device that does not use needles for:

(1) The collection of bodily fluids or withdrawal of body fluids after initial venous or arterial access is established; (2) The administration of medication or fluids; or (3) Any other procedure involving the potential for occupational exposure to bloodborne pathogens due to percutaneous injuries from contaminated sharps.

Occupational Exposure means reasonably anticipated skin, eye, mucous membrane, or parenteral contact with blood or other potentially infectious materials that may result from the performance of an employee's duties.

Other Potentially Infectious Materials means (1) The following human body fluids: semen, vaginal secretions, cerebrospinal fluid, synovial fluid, pleural fluid, pericardial fluid, peritoneal fluid, amniotic fluid, saliva in dental procedures, any body fluid that is visibly contaminated with blood, and all body fluids in situations where it is difficult or impossible to differentiate between body fluids; (2) Any unfixed tissue or organ (other than intact skin) from a human (living or dead); and (3) HIV-containing cell or tissue cultures, organ cultures, and HIV- or HBV-containing culture medium or other solutions; and blood, organs, or other tissues from experimental animals infected with HIV or HBV.

Parenteral means piercing mucous membranes or the skin barrier through such events as needlesticks, human bites, cuts, and abrasions.

Personal Protective Equipment is specialized clothing or equipment worn by an employee for protection against a hazard. General work clothes (e.g., uniforms, pants, shirts or blouses) not intended to function as protection against a hazard are not considered to be personal protective equipment.

Production Facility means a facility engaged in industrial-scale, large-volume or high concentration production of HIV or HBV.

Regulated Waste means liquid or semi-liquid blood or other potentially infectious materials; contaminated items that would release blood or other potentially infectious materials in a liquid or semi-liquid state if compressed; items that are caked with dried blood or other potentially infectious materials and are capable of releasing these materials during handling; contaminated sharps; and pathological and microbiological wastes containing blood or other potentially infectious materials.

Research Laboratory means a laboratory producing or using research-laboratory-scale amounts of HIV or HBV. Research laboratories may produce high concentrations of HIV or HBV but not in the volume found in production facilities.

Sharps with engineered sharps injury protections means a nonneedle sharp or a needle device used for withdrawing body fluids, accessing a vein or artery, or administering medications or other fluids, with a built-in safety feature or mechanism that effectively reduces the risk of an exposure incident.

Source Individual means any individual, living or dead, whose blood or other potentially infectious materials may be a source of occupational exposure to the employee. Examples include, but are not limited to, hospital and clinic patients; clients in institutions for the developmentally disabled; trauma victims; clients of drug and alcohol treatment facilities; residents of hospices and nursing homes; human remains; and individuals who donate or sell blood or blood components.

Sterilize means the use of a physical or chemical procedure to destroy all microbial life including highly resistant bacterial endospores.

Universal Precautions is an approach to infection control. According to the concept of Universal Precautions, all human blood and certain human body fluids are treated as if known to be infectious for HIV, HBV, and other bloodborne pathogens.

Work Practice Controls means controls that reduce the likelihood of exposure by altering the manner in which a task is performed (e.g., prohibiting recapping of needles by a two-handed technique).

 

OSHA RESPIRATORY SAFETY

Air-purifying respirator means a respirator with an air-purifying filter, cartridge, or canister that removes specific air contaminants by passing ambient air through the air-purifying element.

Assigned protection factor (APF) means the workplace level of respiratory protection that a respirator or class of respirators is expected to provide to employees when the employer implements a continuing, effective respiratory protection program as specified by this section.

Atmosphere-supplying respirator means a respirator that supplies the respirator user with breathing air from a source independent of the ambient atmosphere, and includes supplied-air respirators (SARs) and self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) units.

Canister or cartridge means a container with a filter, sorbent, or catalyst, or combination of these items, which removes specific contaminants from the air passed through the container.

Demand respirator means an atmosphere-supplying respirator that admits breathing air to the facepiece only when a negative pressure is created inside the facepiece by inhalation.

Emergency situation means any occurrence such as, but not limited to, equipment failure, rupture of containers, or failure of control equipment that may or does result in an uncontrolled significant release of an airborne contaminant.

Employee exposure means exposure to a concentration of an airborne contaminant that would occur if the employee were not using respiratory protection.

End-of-service-life indicator (ESLI) means a system that warns the respirator user of the approach of the end of adequate respiratory protection, for example, that the sorbent is approaching saturation or is no longer effective.

Escape-only respirator means a respirator intended to be used only for emergency exit.

Filter or air purifying element means a component used in respirators to remove solid or liquid aerosols from the inspired air.

Filtering facepiece (dust mask) means a negative pressure particulate respirator with a filter as an integral part of the facepiece or with the entire facepiece composed of the filtering medium.

Fit factor means a quantitative estimate of the fit of a particular respirator to a specific individual, and typically estimates the ratio of the concentration of a substance in ambient air to its concentration inside the respirator when worn.

Fit test means the use of a protocol to qualitatively or quantitatively evaluate the fit of a respirator on an individual. (See also Qualitative fit test QLFT and Quantitative fit test QNFT.)

Helmet means a rigid respiratory inlet covering that also provides head protection against impact and penetration.

High efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter means a filter that is at least 99.97% efficient in removing monodisperse particles of 0.3 micrometers in diameter. The equivalent NIOSH 42 CFR 84 particulate filters are the N100, R100, and P100 filters.

Hood means a respiratory inlet covering that completely covers the head and neck and may also cover portions of the shoulders and torso.

Immediately dangerous to life or health (IDLH) means an atmosphere that poses an immediate threat to life, would cause irreversible adverse health effects, or would impair an individual's ability to escape from a dangerous atmosphere.

Interior structural firefighting means the physical activity of fire suppression, rescue or both, inside of buildings or enclosed structures which are involved in a fire situation beyond the incipient stage. (See 29 CFR 1910.155)

Loose-fitting facepiece means a respiratory inlet covering that is designed to form a partial seal with the face.

Maximum use concentration (MUC) means the maximum atmospheric concentration of a hazardous substance from which an employee can be expected to be protected when wearing a respirator, and is determined by the assigned protection factor of the respirator or class of respirators and the exposure limit of the hazardous substance. The MUC can be determined mathematically by multiplying the assigned protection factor specified for a respirator by the required OSHA permissible exposure limit, short-term exposure limit, or ceiling limit. When no OSHA exposure limit is available for a hazardous substance, an employer must determine an MUC on the basis of relevant available information and informed professional judgment.

Negative pressure respirator (tight fitting) means a respirator in which the air pressure inside the facepiece is negative during inhalation with respect to the ambient air pressure outside the respirator.

Oxygen deficient atmosphere means an atmosphere with an oxygen content below 19.5% by volume.

Physician or other licensed health care professional (PLHCP) means an individual whose legally permitted scope of practice (i.e., license, registration, or certification) allows him or her to independently provide, or be delegated the responsibility to provide, some or all of the health care services required by paragraph (e) of this section.

Positive pressure respirator means a respirator in which the pressure inside the respiratory inlet covering exceeds the ambient air pressure outside the respirator.

Powered air-purifying respirator (PAPR) means an air-purifying respirator that uses a blower to force the ambient air through air-purifying elements to the inlet covering.

Pressure demand respirator means a positive pressure atmosphere-supplying respirator that admits breathing air to the facepiece when the positive pressure is reduced inside the facepiece by inhalation.

Qualitative fit test (QLFT) means a pass/fail fit test to assess the adequacy of respirator fit that relies on the individual's response to the test agent.

Quantitative fit test (QNFT) means an assessment of the adequacy of respirator fit by numerically measuring the amount of leakage into the respirator.

Respiratory inlet covering means that portion of a respirator that forms the protective barrier between the user's respiratory tract and an air-purifying device or breathing air source, or both. It may be a facepiece, helmet, hood, suit, or a mouthpiece respirator with nose clamp.

Self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) means an atmosphere-supplying respirator for which the breathing air source is designed to be carried by the user.

Service life means the period of time that a respirator, filter or sorbent, or other respiratory equipment provides adequate protection to the wearer.

Supplied-air respirator (SAR) or airline respirator means an atmosphere-supplying respirator for which the source of breathing air is not designed to be carried by the user.

This section means this respiratory protection standard.

Tight-fitting facepiece means a respiratory inlet covering that forms a complete seal with the face.

User seal check means an action conducted by the respirator user to determine if the respirator is properly seated to the face.

 

OSHA HEARING CONSERVATION

Action level - An 8-hour time-weighted average of 85 decibels measured on the A-scale, slow response, or equivalently, a dose of fifty percent.

Audiogram - A chart, graph, or table resulting from an audiometric test showing an individual's hearing threshold levels as a function of frequency.

Audiologist - A professional, specializing in the study and rehabilitation of hearing, who is certified by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association or licensed by a state board of examiners.

Baseline audiogram - The audiogram against which future audiograms are compared.

Criterion sound level - A sound level of 90 decibels. Decibel (dB) - Unit of measurement of sound level.

Hertz (Hz) - Unit of measurement of frequency, numerically equal to cycles per second.

Medical pathology - A disorder or disease. For purposes of this regulation, a condition or disease affecting the ear, which should be treated by a physician specialist.

Noise dose - The ratio, expressed as a percentage, of (1) the time integral, over a stated time or event, of the 0.6 power of the measured SLOW exponential time-averaged, squared A-weighted sound pressure and (2) the product of the criterion duration (8 hours) and the 0.6 power of the squared sound pressure corresponding to the criterion sound level (90 dB).

Noise dosimeter - An instrument that integrates a function of sound pressure over a period of time in such a manner that it directly indicates a noise dose.

Otolaryngologist - A physician specializing in diagnosis and treatment of disorders of the ear, nose and throat.

Representative exposure - Measurements of an employee's noise dose or 8-hour time-weighted average sound level that the employers deem to be representative of the exposures of other employees in the workplace.

Sound level - Ten times the common logarithm of the ratio of the square of the measured A-weighted sound pressure to the square of the standard reference pressure of 20 micropascals. Unit: decibels (dB). For use with this regulation, SLOW time response, in accordance with ANSI S1.4-1971 (R1976), is required.

Sound level meter - An instrument for the measurement of sound level.

Time-weighted average sound level - That sound level, which if constant over an 8-hour exposure, would result in the same noise dose as is measured.


OSHA CONFINED SPACE STANDARD

Permit-Required Confined Spaces, 29 CFR 1910.146 Glossary of Terms

Acceptable entry conditions: the conditions that must exist in a permit space to allow entry and to ensure that employees involved with a permit-required confined space entry can safely enter into and work within the space.

Attendant: an individual stationed outside one or more permit spaces who monitors the authorized entrants and who performs all attendant's duties assigned in the employer's permit space program.

Authorized entrant: an employee who is authorized by the employer to enter a permit space.

Blanking or blinding: the absolute closure of a pipe, line or duct by the fastening of a solid plate (such as a spectacle blind or a skillet blind) that completely covers the bore and that is capable of withstanding the maximum pressure of the pipe, line or duct with no leakage beyond the plate.

Confined space: a space that:
(1) Is large enough and so configured that an employee can bodily enter and perform assigned work; and

(2) Has limited or restricted means for entry or exit (for example, tanks, vessels, silos, storage bins, hoppers, vaults and pits are spaces that may have limited means of entry.); and

(3) Is not designed for continuous employee occupancy.

Double block and bleed: the closure of a line, duct or pipe by closing and locking or tagging two in-line valves and by opening and locking or tagging a drain or vent valve in the line between the two closed valves.

Emergency: any occurrence (including any failure of hazard control or monitoring equipment) or event internal or external to the permit space that could endanger entrants.

Engulfment: the surrounding and effective capture of a person by a liquid or finely divided (flowable) solid substance that can be aspirated to cause death by filling or plugging the respiratory system or that can exert enough force on the body to cause death by strangulation, constriction or crushing.

Entry: the action by which a person passes through an opening into a permit-required confined space. Entry includes ensuing work activities in that space and is considered to have occurred as soon as any part of the entrant's body breaks the plane of an opening into the space.

Entry permit (permit): the written or printed document that is provided by the employer to allow and control entry into a permit space and that contains the information specified in paragraph (f) of this section.

Entry supervisor: the person (such as the employer, foreman or crew chief) responsible for determining if acceptable entry conditions are present at a permit space where entry is planned, for authorizing entry and overseeing entry operations, and for terminating entry as required by this section.

NOTE: An entry supervisor also may serve as an attendant or as an authorized entrant, as long as that person is trained and equipped as required by this section for each role he or she fills. Also, the duties of entry supervisor may be passed from one individual to another during the course of an entry operation.

Hazardous atmosphere: an atmosphere that may expose employees to the risk of death, incapacitation, impairment of ability to self-rescue (that is, escape unaided from a permit space), injury or acute illness from one or more of the following causes:

(1) Flammable gas, vapor, or mist in excess of 10 percent of its lower flammable limit (LFL);

(2) Airborne combustible dust at a concentration that meets or exceeds its LFL;

NOTE: This concentration may be approximated as a condition in which the dust obscures vision at a distance of 5 feet (1.52 m) or less.

(3) Atmospheric oxygen concentration below 19.5 percent or above 23.5 percent;

(4) Atmospheric concentration of any substance for which a dose or a permissible exposure limit is published in Subpart G, Occupational Health and Environmental Control, or in Subpart Z, Toxic and Hazardous Substances, of this Part and which could result in employee exposure in excess of its dose or permissible exposure limit;

NOTE: An atmospheric concentration of any substance that is not capable of causing death, incapacitation, impairment of ability to self-rescue, injury or acute illness due to its health effects is not covered by this provision.

(5) Any other atmospheric condition that is immediately dangerous to life or health.

NOTE: For air contaminants for which OSHA has not determined a dose or permissible exposure limit, other sources of information, such as Material Safety Data Sheets that comply with the Hazard Communication Standard, section 1910.1200 of this Part, published information and internal documents can provide guidance in establishing acceptable atmospheric conditions.

Hot work permit: the employer's written authorization to perform operations (for example, riveting, welding, cutting, burning and heating) capable of providing a source of ignition.

Immediately dangerous to life or health (IDLH): any condition that poses an immediate or delayed threat to life or that would cause irreversible adverse health effects or that would interfere with an individual's ability to escape unaided from a permit space.

NOTE: Some materials -- hydrogen fluoride gas and cadmium vapor, for example -- may produce immediate transient effects that, even if severe, may pass without medical attention, but are followed by sudden, possibly fatal collapse 12-72 hours after exposure. The victim "feels normal" from recovery from transient effects until collapse. Such materials in hazardous quantities are considered to be "immediately" dangerous to life or health.

Inerting: the displacement of the atmosphere in a permit space by a noncombustible gas (such as nitrogen) to such an extent that the resulting atmosphere is noncombustible.

NOTE: This procedure produces an IDLH oxygen-deficient atmosphere.

Isolation: the process by which a permit space is removed from service and completely protected against the release of energy and material into the space by such means as: blanking or blinding; misaligning or removing sections of lines, pipes, or ducts; a double block and bleed system; lockout or tagout of all sources of energy; or blocking or disconnecting all mechanical linkages.

Line breaking: the intentional opening of a pipe, line or duct that is or has been carrying flammable, corrosive, or toxic material, an inert gas or any fluid at a volume, pressure or temperature capable of causing injury.

Non-permit confined space: a confined space that does not contain or, with respect to atmospheric hazards, have the potential to contain any hazard capable of causing death or serious physical harm.

Oxygen deficient atmosphere: an atmosphere containing less than 19.5 percent oxygen by volume.

Oxygen enriched atmosphere: an atmosphere containing more than 23.5 percent oxygen by volume.

Permit-required confined space (permit space): a confined space that has one or more of the following characteristics:

(1) Contains or has a potential to contain a hazardous atmosphere;

(2) Contains a material that has the potential for engulfing an entrant;

(3) Has an internal configuration such that an entrant could be trapped or asphyxiated by inwardly converging walls or by a floor which slopes downward and tapers to a smaller cross-section; or

(4) Contains any other recognized serious safety or health hazard.

Permit-required confined space program (permit space program): the employer's overall program for controlling, and, where appropriate, for protecting employees from, permit space hazards and for regulating employee entry into permit spaces.

Permit system: the employer's written procedure for preparing and issuing permits for entry and for returning the permit space to service following termination of entry.

Prohibited condition: any condition in a permit space that is not allowed by the permit during the period when entry is authorized.

Rescue service: the personnel designated to rescue employees from permit spaces.

Retrieval system: the equipment (including a retrieval line, chest or full-body harness, wristlets, if appropriate and a lifting device or anchor) used for non-entry rescue of persons from permit spaces.

Testing: the process by which the hazards that may confront entrants of a permit space are identified and evaluated. Testing includes specifying the tests that are to be performed in the permit space.

NOTE: Testing enables employers both to devise and implement adequate control measures for the protection of authorized entrants and to determine if acceptable entry conditions are present immediately prior to, and during, entry.

 

OSHA EMERGENCY EXIT PLAN

Electroluminescent means a light-emitting capacitor. Alternating current excites phosphor atoms when placed between the electrically conductive surfaces to produce light. This light source is typically contained inside the device.

Exit means that portion of an exit route that is generally separated from other areas to provide a protected way of travel to the exit discharge. An example of an exit is a two-hour fire resistance-rated enclosed stairway that leads from the fifth floor of an office building to the outside of the building.

Exit access means that portion of an exit route that leads to an exit. An example of an exit access is a corridor on the fifth floor of an office building that leads to a two-hour fire resistance-rated enclosed stairway (the Exit).

Exit discharge means the part of the exit route that leads directly outside or to a street, walkway, refuge area, public way, or open space with access to the outside. An example of an exit discharge is a door at the bottom of a two-hour fire resistance-rated enclosed stairway that discharges to a place of safety outside the building.

Exit route means a continuous and unobstructed path of exit travel from any point within a workplace to a place of safety (including refuge areas). An exit route consists of three parts: The exit access; the exit; and, the exit discharge. (An exit route includes all vertical and horizontal areas along the route.)

High hazard area means an area inside a workplace in which operations include high hazard materials, processes, or contents.

Occupant load means the total number of persons that may occupy a workplace or portion of a workplace at any one time. The occupant load of a workplace is calculated by dividing the gross floor area of the workplace or portion of the workplace by the occupant load factor for that particular type of workplace occupancy. Information regarding the "Occupant load" is located in NFPA 101-2009, Life Safety Code, and in IFC-2009, International Fire Code (incorporated by reference, see § 1910.6).


OSHA HEXAVALENT CHROMIUM REGULATION

Action level means a concentration of airborne chromium (VI) of 2.5 micrograms per cubic meter of air (2.5 µg/m3) calculated as an 8-hour time-weighted average (TWA).

Chromium (VI) [hexavalent chromium or Cr(VI)] means chromium with a valence of positive six, in any form and in any compound.

Emergency means any occurrence that results, or is likely to result, in an uncontrolled release of chromium (VI). If an incidental release of chromium (VI) can be controlled at the time of release by employees in the immediate release area, or by maintenance personnel, it is not an emergency.

Employee exposure means the exposure to airborne chromium (VI) that would occur if the employee were not using a respirator.

High-efficiency particulate air [HEPA] filter means a filter that is at least 99.97 percent efficient in removing mono-dispersed particles of 0.3 micrometers in diameter or larger.

Historical monitoring data means data from chromium (VI) monitoring conducted prior to May 30, 2006, obtained during work operations conducted under workplace conditions closely resembling the processes, types of material, control methods, work practices, and environmental conditions in the employer's current operations.

Objective data means information such as air monitoring data from industry-wide surveys or calculations based on the composition or chemical and physical properties of a substance demonstrating the employee exposure to chromium (VI) associated with a particular product or material or a specific process, operation, or activity. The data must reflect workplace conditions closely resembling the processes, types of material, control methods, work practices, and environmental conditions in the employer's current operations.

Regulated area means an area, demarcated by the employer, where an employee's exposure to airborne concentrations of chromium (VI) exceeds, or can reasonably be expected to exceed, the PEL.
 

OSHA FALL PROTECTION REGULATION

Anchorage means a secure point of attachment for lifelines, lanyards or deceleration devices.


Body belt (safety belt) means a strap with means both for securing it about the waist and for attaching it to a lanyard, lifeline, or deceleration device.


Body harness means straps which may be secured about the employee in a manner that will distribute the fall arrest forces over at least the thighs, pelvis, waist, chest and shoulders with means for attaching it to other components of a personal fall arrest system.


Buckle means any device for holding the body belt or body harness closed around the employee's body.


Connector means a device which is used to couple (connect) parts of the personal fall arrest system and positioning device systems together. It may be an independent component of the system, such as a carabiner, or it may be an integral component of part of the system (such as a buckle or dee-ring sewn into a body belt or body harness, or a snap-hook spliced or sewn to a lanyard or self-retracting lanyard).


Controlled access zone (CAZ) means an area in which certain work (e.g., overhand bricklaying) may take place without the use of guardrail systems, personal fall arrest systems, or safety net systems and access to the zone is controlled.


Dangerous equipment means equipment (such as pickling or galvanizing tanks, degreasing units, machinery, electrical equipment, and other units) which, as a result of form or function, may be hazardous to employees who fall onto or into such equipment.


Deceleration device means any mechanism, such as a rope grab, rip-stitch lanyard, specially-woven lanyard, tearing or deforming lanyards, automatic self-retracting lifelines/lanyards, etc., which serves to dissipate a substantial amount of energy during a fall arrest, or otherwise limit the energy imposed on an employee during fall arrest.


Deceleration distance means the additional vertical distance a falling employee travels, excluding lifeline elongation and free fall distance, before stopping, from the point at which the deceleration device begins to operate. It is measured as the distance between the location of an employee's body belt or body harness attachment point at the moment of activation (at the onset of fall arrest forces) of the deceleration device during a fall, and the location of that attachment point after the employee comes to a full stop.


Equivalent means alternative designs, materials, or methods to protect against a hazard which the employer can demonstrate will provide an equal or greater degree of safety for employees than the methods, materials or designs specified in the standard.


Failure means load refusal, breakage, or separation of component parts. Load refusal is the point where the ultimate strength is exceeded.


Free fall means the act of falling before a personal fall arrest system begins to apply force to arrest the fall.


Free fall distance means the vertical displacement of the fall arrest attachment point on the employee's body belt or body harness between onset of the fall and just before the system begins to apply force to arrest the fall. This distance excludes deceleration distance, and lifeline/lanyard elongation, but includes any deceleration device slide distance or self-retracting lifeline/lanyard extension before they operate and fall arrest forces occur.


Guardrail system means a barrier erected to prevent employees from falling to lower levels.


Hole means a gap or void 2 inches (5.1 cm) or more in its least dimension, in a floor, roof, or other walking/working surface.


Infeasible means that it is impossible to perform the construction work using a conventional fall protection system (i.e., guardrail system, safety net system, or personal fall arrest system) or that it is technologically impossible to use any one of these systems to provide fall protection.


Lanyard means a flexible line of rope, wire rope, or strap which generally has a connector at each end for connecting the body belt or body harness to a deceleration device, lifeline, or anchorage.


Leading edge means the edge of a floor, roof, or formwork for a floor or other walking/working surface (such as the deck) which changes location as additional floor, roof, decking, or formwork sections are placed, formed, or constructed. A leading edge is considered to be an "unprotected side and edge" during periods when it is not actively and continuously under construction.


Lifeline means a component consisting of a flexible line for connection to an anchorage at one end to hang vertically (vertical lifeline), or for connection to anchorages at both ends to stretch horizontally (horizontal lifeline), and which serves as a means for connecting other components of a personal fall arrest system to the anchorage.


Low-slope roof means a roof having a slope less than or equal to 4 in 12 (vertical to horizontal).


Lower levels means those areas or surfaces to which an employee can fall. Such areas or surfaces include, but are not limited to, ground levels, floors, platforms, ramps, runways, excavations, pits, tanks, material, water, equipment, structures, or portions thereof.


Mechanical equipment means all motor or human propelled wheeled equipment used for roofing work, except wheelbarrows and mopcarts.


Opening means a gap or void 30 inches (76 cm) or more high and 18 inches (48 cm) or more wide, in a wall or partition, through which employees can fall to a lower level.


Overhand bricklaying and related work means the process of laying bricks and masonry units such that the surface of the wall to be jointed is on the opposite side of the wall from the mason, requiring the mason to lean over the wall to complete the work. Related work includes mason tending and electrical installation incorporated into the brick wall during the overhand bricklaying process.


Personal fall arrest system means a system used to arrest an employee in a fall from a working level. It consists of an anchorage, connectors, a body belt or body harness and may include a lanyard, deceleration device, lifeline, or suitable combinations of these. As of January 1, 1998, the use of a body belt for fall arrest is prohibited.


Positioning device system means a body belt or body harness system rigged to allow an employee to be supported on an elevated vertical surface, such as a wall, and work with both hands free while leaning.


Rope grab means a deceleration device which travels on a lifeline and automatically, by friction, engages the lifeline and locks so as to arrest the fall of an employee. A rope grab usually employs the principle of inertial locking, cam/level locking, or both.


Roof means the exterior surface on the top of a building. This does not include floors or formwork which, because a building has not been completed, temporarily become the top surface of a building.


Roofing work means the hoisting, storage, application, and removal of roofing materials and equipment, including related insulation, sheet metal, and vapor barrier work, but not including the construction of the roof deck.

Safety-monitoring system means a safety system in which a competent person is responsible for recognizing and warning employees of fall hazards.


Self-retracting lifeline/lanyard means a deceleration device containing a drum-wound line which can be slowly extracted from, or retracted onto, the drum under slight tension during normal employee movement, and which, after onset of a fall, automatically locks the drum and arrests the fall.


Snaphook means a connector comprised of a hook-shaped member with a normally closed keeper, or similar arrangement, which may be opened to permit the hook to receive an object and, when released, automatically closes to retain the object. Snaphooks are generally one of two types:


Steep roof means a roof having a slope greater than 4 in 12 (vertical to horizontal).


Toeboard means a low protective barrier that will prevent the fall of materials and equipment to lower levels and provide protection from falls for personnel.


Unprotected sides and edges means any side or edge (except at entrances to points of access) of a walking/working surface, e.g., floor, roof, ramp, or runway where there is no wall or guardrail system at least 39 inches (1.0 m) high.


Walking/working surface means any surface, whether horizontal or vertical on which an employee walks or works, including, but not limited to, floors, roofs, ramps, bridges, runways, formwork and concrete reinforcing steel but not including ladders, vehicles, or trailers, on which employees must be located in order to perform their job duties.


Warning line system means a barrier erected on a roof to warn employees that they are approaching an unprotected roof side or edge, and which designates an area in which roofing work may take place without the use of guardrail, body belt, or safety net systems to protect employees in the area.


Work area means that portion of a walking/working surface where job duties are being performed.

 

OSHA OVERHEAD CRANE STANDARD

A "crane" is a machine for lifting and lowering a load and moving it horizontally, with the hoisting mechanism an integral part of the machine. Cranes whether fixed or mobile are driven manually or by power.

An "automatic crane" is a crane which when activated operates through a preset cycle or cycles.

A "cab-operated crane" is a crane controlled by an operator in a cab located on the bridge or trolley.

"Cantilever gantry crane" means a gantry or semigantry crane in which the bridge girders or trusses extend transversely beyond the crane runway on one or both sides.

"Floor-operated crane" means a crane which is pendant or nonconductive rope controlled by an operator on the floor or an independent platform.

"Gantry crane" means a crane similar to an overhead crane except that the bridge for carrying the trolley or trolleys is rigidly supported on two or more legs running on fixed rails or other runway.

"Hot metal handling crane" means an overhead crane used for transporting or pouring molten material.

"Overhead crane" means a crane with a movable bridge carrying a movable or fixed hoisting mechanism and traveling on an overhead fixed runway structure.

"Power-operated crane" means a crane whose mechanism is driven by electric, air, hydraulic, or internal combustion means.

A "pulpit-operated crane" is a crane operated from a fixed operator station not attached to the crane.

A "remote-operated crane" is a crane controlled by an operator not in a pulpit or in the cab attached to the crane, by any method other than pendant or rope control.

A "semigantry crane" is a gantry crane with one end of the bridge rigidly supported on one or more legs that run on a fixed rail or runway, the other end of the bridge being supported by a truck running on an elevated rail or runway.

"Storage bridge crane" means a gantry type crane of long span usually used for bulk storage of material; the bridge girders or trusses are rigidly or nonrigidly supported on one or more legs. It may have one or more fixed or hinged cantilever ends.

"Wall crane" means a crane having a jib with or without trolley and supported from a side wall or line of columns of a building. It is a traveling type and operates on a runway attached to the side wall or columns.

"Appointed" means assigned specific responsibilities by the employer or the employer's representative.

"ANSI" means the American National Standards Institute.

An "auxiliary hoist" is a supplemental hoisting unit of lighter capacity and usually higher speed than provided for the main hoist.

A "brake" is a device used for retarding or stopping motion by friction or power means.

A "drag brake" is a brake which provides retarding force without external control.

A "holding brake" is a brake that automatically prevents motion when power is off.

"Bridge" means that part of a crane consisting of girders, trucks, end ties, footwalks, and drive mechanism which carries the trolley or trolleys.

"Bridge travel" means the crane movement in a direction parallel to the crane runway.

A "bumper" [buffer] is an energy absorbing device for reducing impact when a moving crane or trolley reaches the end of its permitted travel; or when two moving cranes or trolleys come in contact.

The "cab" is the operator's compartment on a crane.

"Clearance" means the distance from any part of the crane to a point of the nearest obstruction.

"Collectors current" are contacting devices for collecting current from runway or bridge conductors.

"Conductors, bridge" are the electrical conductors located along the bridge structure of a crane to provide power to the trolley.

"Conductors, runway" [main] are the electrical conductors located along a crane runway to provide power to the crane.

The "control braking means" is a method of controlling crane motor speed when in an overhauling condition.

"Countertorque" means a method of control by which the power to the motor is reversed to develop torque in the opposite direction.

"Dynamic" means a method of controlling crane motor speeds when in the overhauling condition to provide a retarding force.

"Regenerative" means a form of dynamic braking in which the electrical energy generated is fed back into the power system.

"Mechanical" means a method of control by friction.

"Controller, spring return" means a controller which when released will return automatically to a neutral position.

"Designated" means selected or assigned by the employer or the employer's representative as being qualified to perform specific duties.

A "drift point" means a point on a travel motion controller which releases the brake while the motor is not energized. This allows for coasting before the brake is set.

The "drum" is the cylindrical member around which the ropes are wound for raising or lowering the load.

An "equalizer" is a device which compensates for unequal length or stretch of a rope.

"Exposed" means capable of being contacted inadvertently. Applied to hazardous objects not adequately guarded or isolated.

"Fail-safe" means a provision designed to automatically stop or safely control any motion in which a malfunction occurs.

"Footwalk" means the walkway with handrail, attached to the bridge or trolley for access purposes.

A "hoist" is an apparatus which may be a part of a crane, exerting a force for lifting or lowering.

"Hoist chain" means the load bearing chain in a hoist.
"Hoist motion" means that motion of a crane which raises and lowers a load.

"Load" means the total superimposed weight on the load block or hook.

The "load block" is the assembly of hook or shackle, swivel, bearing, sheaves, pins, and frame suspended by the hoisting rope.

"Magnet" means an electromagnetic device carried on a crane hook to pick up loads magnetically.

"Main hoist" means the hoist mechanism provided for lifting the maximum rated load.

A "man trolley" is a trolley having an operator's cab attached thereto.

"Rated load" means the maximum load for which a crane or individual hoist is designed and built by the manufacturer and shown on the equipment nameplate(s).

"Rope" refers to wire rope, unless otherwise specified.

"Running sheave" means a sheave which rotates as the load block is raised or lowered.

"Runway" means an assembly of rails, beams, girders, brackets, and framework on which the crane or trolley travels.

"Side pull" means that portion of the hoist pull acting horizontally when the hoist lines are not operated vertically.

"Span" means the horizontal distance center to center of runway rails.

"Standby crane" means a crane which is not in regular service but which is used occasionally or intermittently as required.

A "stop" is a device to limit travel of a trolley or crane bridge. This device normally is attached to a fixed structure and normally does not have energy absorbing ability.

A "switch" is a device for making, breaking, or for changing the connections in an electric circuit.

An "emergency stop switch" is a manually or automatically operated electric switch to cut off electric power independently of the regular operating controls.

A "limit switch" is a switch which is operated by some part or motion of a power-driven machine or equipment to alter the electric circuit associated with the machine or equipment.

A "main switch" is a switch controlling the entire power supply to the crane.

A "master switch" is a switch which dominates the operation of contactors, relays, or other remotely operated devices.

The "trolley" is the unit which travels on the bridge rails and carries the hoisting mechanism.

"Trolley travel" means the trolley movement at right angles to the crane runway.

"Truck" means the unit consisting of a frame, wheels, bearings, and axles which supports the bridge girders or trolleys.

 

OSHA FIRE / SAFETY EVACUATION

Assembly Point: A designated outside area safe for evacuated occupants.

Designated Employee: Individual assigned to assist the emergency/fire prevention coordinator in evacuations and fire prevention.

Emergency Evacuation/Fire Prevention Plan Coordinator: Individual responsible for administering the emergency and/or fire prevention plans for a State facility.
Emergency Evacuation Plan: A plan describing procedures required for employee protection from fire or other emergencies in the workplace.

Exit: That portion of a means of egress from a building, structure, or worksite.
Exit Access: That portion of a means of egress which leads to an entrance to an exit.

Fire Prevention Plan: A plan describing procedures required for employees to prevent fires in the workplace.

Means of Egress: A continuous and unobstructed way of exit travel from any point in a building, structure, or worksite to a public way.