LEL Monitoring During Hazard Surveys for Issuance of Hot Work Permits

摘要

For safe operation of processes involving combustible materials, hazard surveys must be performed before hot work permits are issued. These surveys typically involve the use of combustible gas meters-also called lower explosive limit (LEL) meters. To perform the surveys properly, work instructions and standard operating procedures (SOPs) must be developed, implemented and documented. Training in LEL instrument use, instrument calibration, sampling strategy, continuous or follow-up monitoring, tracking of denied permits, communication between departments related to the content of processes, documentation of results, auditing of hot work permit procedures and results, and the continuous improvement of those SOPs must be addressed. This article reviews and critiques existing regulations and guidance documents and makes recommendations.