The Greater Baton Rouge Industry Alliance (GBRIA) Safety Fundamentals for Hydroblasting

Introduction The Safety Fundamentals for Hydroblasting is a guideline developed by a joint committee of hydroblasting contractors and owner/plant site members of GBRIA in an effort to reduce incidents, standardize plant and contractor requirements and to improve communications between plants and contractors. This standardized guideline will help raise the awareness of the hazards and ways to mitigate those hazards among both plant and hydroblaster company personnel. The GBRIA Safety, Health and Security Committees Hydroblasting Subcommittee developed the guidelines during 2009 - 2010 and recommends that all plants and area hydroblasting companies implement these guidelines by June 1, 2011. To ensure that these guidelines are understood by each and every hydroblasting employee, a computer based (CBT) training module 45 minutes in length has been developed and is being delivered by The Safety Council of the Louisiana Capital Area. As a part of this guideline, it is recommended that all plants require hydroblasting contractors to take the CBT before being allowed entry to sites. Adoption by all plants will help raise the bar in safety standards in the hydroblasting industry. The CBT costs $8/training session/person and students can be enrolled for training at www.safetylca.org. Plants/owners should update their gate entry requirements with the Safety Council and educate gate entry, purchasing, contracts administration, safety, maintenance, operations or other personnel involved with hydroblasting on these new standard requirements. In addition, plants should develop internal audit processes to ensure compliance by contractors with these requirements. Hydroblasting Safety Fundamentals The following are the minimum guidelines. 1. Hydroblasting companies must: i. Provide its employees the computer based training (CBT) module on hydroblasting provided at the Safety Council of the Louisiana Capital Area (SC) as a pre-requisite for employees to gain plant entry. Have a documented training program that includes but is not not limited to energy isolation of equipment, confined space entry, correct body positioning for tasks, utilizing shotguns, flex lancing, rigid lancing, line moling and use and installation of anti-withdrawal safety devices as a minimum. Ensure that all employees know how to properly shut down a pump and disconnect its energy source to perform adjustment or maintenance to the cleaning system.

ii.

iii.

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iv. Have a documented heat stress policy and provide training on their policy and work/rest schedule to all employees. Have a documented personal accountability policy that is communicated to all employees on atrisk behaviors that will not be tolerated and that can lead up to and including termination of employment. Hydroblasting companies are subject to having their hydroblasting policies and training programs audited for plant entry compliance on these minimum safety standards. 2. A pre-job check list/Job Safety Analysis (JSA) must be utilized to help identify all job hazards and ensure the safe execution of the job with the crew. This documentation must address at a minimum the hydroblasting plant entry policies found in this document. The pre-job check list/JSA document shall be initiated and reviewed with the crew again, anytime there is a change in job scope, an unsafe condition arises, additional personnel are added to the job or at each and every personnel shift change. 3. All required Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) must be worn on the job per hydroblasting company and plant requirements to include, but not limited to: i. Hard hat ii. Hand Protection iii. Appropriate hearing protection must be worn up to and including double hearing protection. iv. Safety glasses with attached side shields. Dark tinted safety glasses may not to be worn during vessel entry or at night time. v. Mono-goggles and/or a face shield must be worn as required, including when the pH of the chemical exposure is low on the acidic or high on the alkaline side. vi. A faceshield must be worn as required by any member of the crew where exposure to chemicals and flying debris exists at all times when required. vii. An approved protective chemical suit that minimizes the potential exposure to harmful chemicals must be worn at all times when hydroblasting. viii. FRC (flame resistant clothing) may be required when hydroblasting. ix. Safety toed, metatarsal protection and chemical resistant boots must be worn when hydroblasting. x. An approved escape respirator must be on the person at all times, if required. xi. Special chemical exposure badges must be worn near the facial area and on the outermost garment at all times, if required. xii. Hydroblasting may require use of an air purifying or air supplied respirator. Reduction in the PPE requirements can be achieved when utilizing certain automated equipment and the PPE reduction meets the approval of the plant.

v.

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The Greater Baton Rouge Industry Alliance (GBRIA) Safety Fundamentals for Hydroblasting
4. Deviations or variances from plant or hydroblasting company policy are acceptable only after all other measures have been exhausted and require upper management approval and the approval of the plant/owner representative. Examples of these would be use of shotguns less than 66 (inches) in length and not being able to make use of an attached anti-withdrawal device for either flex lancing, rigid lancing or line moling. 5. Special precautions must be initiated before hydroblasting heat exchangers with metal plugged tubes and tubes with questionable metal integrity. If there is pressure on the shell side of the exchanger, approval from the owner must be obtained before proceeding to ensure that the shell side pressure can in NO WAY impact personnel, even if a tube is compromised during hydroblasting. 6. During and completion of the job, it is the responsibility of the crew to maintain good housekeeping practices on the job site. This includes, but is not limited to, the elimination of slip, trip and fall hazards including proper hose placement; proper disposal of trash, contaminated PPE and chemical/product wastes generated from the cleaning service. 7. All environmental considerations must be given to protecting the plants worksite from chemical leaks either from the cleaning operations or fluids in the equipment being used on the job. The hydroblasting company must comply with their and all plant environmental policies and provide secondary containment and/or use of spill control kits if required by the plant. 8. Barricading of the pump/s and job site hazards is required on every job and should be at a minimum of 10 (feet) to a maximum of 25 (feet) or per plant policy. All barricades should have four sides and be as square as practical. The barricade tape that is used should indicate Danger Hydroblasting on a red background or indicate DANGER on a red background along with a tag which identifies that Hydroblasting work is being done, unless the plant requires a different color. 9. All high pressure pumps provided by hydroblasting companies must be equipped with a rupture disc assembly rated at minimum of 1.2 times the MAWP of the pump. An inspection of the assembly prior to use must show visual evidence (color code banding/tagging) of having been inspected at a minimum on a quarterly basis for the integrity of the rupture disc. 10. Grounding of high pressure pumps provided by hydroblasting companies is required where applicable, as per plant and hydroblasting company policy. 11. At least one tire on a high pressure pump trailer axle must be double chocked against accidental movement, when parked on location. 12. A trained pump attendant is required to be in attendance of pump/s at all times. The attendant must be close enough to shut the pump/s down in an emergency. The attendant must not leave his/her responsibility for any length of time without another trained attendant relieving that person or shutting

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the pump/s down. This applies in the event of an emergency as well. A pump attendant is not allowed to attend more than two pumps in operation within the same barricaded area. 13. All jobs shall include a direct line-of-sight between the pump operator and the hose end equipment operator/attendant, in case of an emergency. If direct line-of-sight cannot be achieved, radio communication or use of an additional person for line-of-sight must be utilized to assist in quickly deenergizing the pump. 14. All high pressure hoses should be routed and protected in a manner that prevents vehicular damage and personnel exposure to the hoses. When possible, roadways should be barricaded for vehicular and pedestrian traffic where high pressure hoses cross roadways. 15. All high pressure and ultra high pressure hoses with outer rubber or plastic covering construction and assemblies, including shotgun whip hoses/assemblies, must be tested at a minimum to the working pressure (WP) of those hoses. Documentation of the hose tests must be recorded to indicate having been tested at a minimum, quarterly. The hose test documentation should include the type (e.g. 10K, 20K, and 40K), size, and identifying markings (e.g. serial # or special numbering system) on the hoses to ensure all hoses get tested. 16. Hydroblasting companies must pressure test and band/tag high pressure hose assemblies quarterly, as a minimum. The band color/tag must reflect the current quarter in which hoses have been tested. 17. Prior-to-use inspection of high pressure hoses and flex lances must include the visual inspection for integrity of the compression fittings, outer cover, and no evidence of broken wire braids. No hose or flex lance with broken wire braids may be manually (hand held) used by the employee e.g. in line moling and flex lancing. 18. When making use of automated line moling or flex lancing equipment in which the operator will not have to manually hold on to the pressurized hose or flex lance. If one or more broken wire braids exists; the hose must be taken out of service and discarded from use. 19. All rigid lance assemblies shall include use of a minimum 3 (foot) shroud to protect the employee handling the end of the lance. The construction of the shroud (e.g. double S.S. braided) shall be sufficient enough to help ensure the safety of the employee against serious injury from the potential of a high pressure hose rupture. The hose shroud must be inspected for inner and outer integrity (e.g. excessive wear and breakdown of reinforcement wire braiding) at a minimum on a quarterly basis. 20. All dump valves must be guarded against accidental activation e.g. foot pedals. 21. The worker closest to the nozzle must be in control of the dump valve e.g. shotgunner, flex lance, rigid lance or line mole operator.

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22. Anti-withdrawal devices must be used on all flex lance, rigid lance and line moling jobs. The antiwithdrawal devices must attach to the equipment being cleaned. When flex lancing or line moling, the lance/hose must be secured (tied off with rope/duct tape etc.) for the maximum length of travel. 23. Anti-withdrawal devices used on tube sheets when flex lancing or rigid lancing must include use of a snorkel that does not exceed 1 (inch) clearance from the tube sheet. In vertical tube sheet applications, the maximum gap clearance of the snorkel and the tube sheet must be additionally protected from the potential of the lance coming out under hydraulic pressure. To prevent the potential of a water-cut to the foot, that gap (between snorkel and tube sheet) must be protected from the lance operator by utilizing some type of physical barrier e.g. 4x4x12 (inches) piece of angle iron or a 2x4x12 (inches) board. There are some situations where manufactured fixed anti withdrawal devices do not fit to all applications. This is where hand held anti withdrawal devices are used, but require a deviation for approval from the owner and hydroblasting company. 24. In addition to use of anti-withdrawal devices when line moling, a stinger must be attached to the end of the nozzle, which is at least 1 times the I.D. of the piping being cleaned. The rigidity of the compression fitting and nozzle length can be included in the overall stinger length requirement. Special consideration shall be given to tees in the line being cleaned when the tee in the line is larger than the main line being cleaned. Additional length of stingers may be required to prevent accidental reversal of the line mole assembly in the piping. 25. All high pressure hoses and flex lances used for line moling must be marked at a minimum 24 (inches) from the end compression fitting. This visual marking will minimize the potential for a serious water-cut when the line mole on the hose end is exiting toward the end of the pipe. 26. All non-rotating equipment high pressure hose assemblies must include whip checks to protect personnel from excessive movement of hoses in case of a hose rupture or blown end fitting. 27. All shotgun whip hoses must be shrouded to protect the shot-gunner against accidental rupture of the whip hose. Shotgun shrouds must be constructed (e.g. double S.S. braided) in a manner that protects the shot-gunner against a serious water-cut. The protective shroud must be a minimum of 6 (feet) in length. The whip hose shroud must be inspected for inner and outer integrity (e.g. excessive wear and breakdown of reinforcement wire braiding) at a minimum on a quarterly basis. 28. All personnel, when the system is under pressure, shall not be within six (6) feet of pressurized connections unless the equipment is shielded or guarded in some manner (including weep holes). 29. The length of the shotgun shall be a minimum of 66 (inches) in overall length from the butt stock of the gun to the end of the nozzle. All shotguns must be guarded against accidental activation of the gun.

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30. It is required to use a shotgun for cleaning the first 6 (inches) of tube sheets and the first 24 (inches) of piping before making use of a flex lance or line mole hose in the cleaning operation of exchangers or piping. This will reduce the potential for personnel injury from a pressurized flex lance or line mole assembly coming out under hydraulic pressure (hydraulicing out) of the tube sheet or piping being cleaned and the high pressure water stream coming in contact with the hydroblaster. 31. All equipment being cleaned shall be shielded against flying debris/chemicals that could pose a potential injury or exposure to someone.

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