Permit-required confined space program generator
A permit-required confined space program is the written document that says how your company finds, evaluates and enters spaces with limited entry or exit and a hazard that could trap or overcome a worker — tanks, vaults, manholes, pits, trenches below grade and similar spaces. General industry work follows 29 CFR 1910.146; construction follows its own 2015 rule, 29 CFR 1926 Subpart AA (1926.1200–1926.1213), which covers the same ground with a few construction-specific additions, including continuous atmospheric monitoring where isolation is infeasible and information exchange between multiple employers on a site. Telecom crews entering manholes and unvented vaults also have a dedicated OSHA provision, 1910.268(o).
What you get
A ready-to-use PDF with your company filled in, version and effective date, a management signature block and an annual review line. Blank lines are left where only your site can answer.
- Scope and policy — general industry or construction permit space rules
- Roles: program administrator, entry supervisor, attendant, authorized entrant — with a roster
- How permit spaces are identified and evaluated, including reclassification when hazards are eliminated
- List of known permit spaces, pre-filled with what you list
- Permit system — entry permit elements, authorization, duration and cancellation
- Atmospheric testing and monitoring order and acceptable entry conditions
- Duties of entrants, attendants and entry supervisors
- Rescue and emergency services — non-entry rescue preference, service evaluation
- Contractor / host employer information exchange
- Telecom manholes and unvented vaults — 1910.268(o) note
- Training content and retraining triggers, with a sign-off log
- Blank entry permit (Appendix A), annual review and management signature
Fill in and download
What the document is built on
- 29 CFR 1910.146(c), (d) — general requirements and the permit space program
- 29 CFR 1910.146(e), (f) — permit system and entry permit
- 29 CFR 1910.146(g) — training
- 29 CFR 1910.146(h), (i), (j) — duties of entrants, attendants, entry supervisors
- 29 CFR 1910.146(k) — rescue and emergency services
- 29 CFR 1926.1203–1926.1211 — construction permit-required confined spaces (Subpart AA)
- 29 CFR 1910.268(o) — guarding, ventilation and testing for telecommunications manholes and unvented vaults
When the job needs documented training, not just a talk — certificate issued the same day.
Questions safety managers ask
What makes a space "permit-required"?
Under 1910.146(b), a confined space (limited entry/exit, not designed for continuous occupancy) becomes permit-required when it has, or could have, a hazardous atmosphere, a material that could engulf an entrant, an internal shape that could trap or asphyxiate someone, or another recognized serious safety or health hazard. Spaces without those hazards can be classified as non-permit confined spaces.
In what order do we test the atmosphere?
Standard practice — and most calibrated multi-gas meters are built this way — is oxygen first, then combustible gases/vapors, then toxic gases/vapors, because a low-oxygen reading changes how the other readings are interpreted. 1910.146(d)(5) and 1926.1204(e) require testing before entry and, where the space cannot be fully isolated, continuous monitoring during entry.
Can the attendant perform the rescue?
Only if the employer’s program allows attendant entry for rescue, the attendant has been relieved by another attendant first, and the attendant is trained and equipped for rescue (1910.146(i), construction 1926.1209). Non-entry (retrieval line) rescue is preferred specifically because it does not require a second person to enter the hazard.
Does this cover telecom manhole entry?
Yes — 1910.268(o) is a telecommunications-specific provision covering guarding manhole and vault openings, ventilation and gas testing before entry, joint power/telecom manholes, and ladder use below 4 feet of depth. It works alongside 1910.146 or 1926 Subpart AA depending on the work; this template includes a dedicated note for it.
Other program generators
A template, not legal advice. It gives you the structure and the regulatory elements; it becomes your program when you fill in the blanks, adapt it to your work, train your people on it and keep it current. Check the current standards and any state OSHA plan that applies to you.