OAR 437-002-0316
Oregon Rules for Telecommunications

(1)

Application. This division sets forth safety and health standards that apply to the work conditions, practices, means, methods, operations, installations, and processes performed at telephone, TV cable, and other signaling equipment centers and installations, and at field installations used to transmit or control communication or other signals of the service supplier and may be located outdoors or in building spaces used for such field installations. “Center” work includes the installation, operation, maintenance, rearrangement, and removal of communications equipment and other associated equipment in telecommunications switching centers. “Field” work includes the installation, operation, maintenance, rearrangement, and removal of conductors and other equipment used for signal or communication service, and of their supporting or containing structures, overhead or underground on public or private rights of way, including buildings or other structures.

(2)

Employee protection in public work areas.

(a)

Before work is begun in the vicinity of vehicular or pedestrian traffic which may endanger employees, pedestrian and traffic control devices shall be provided for all operations on or adjacent to streets, alleys and walkways. The traffic control shall conform to the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) D6.1e-1989 Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Streets and Highways and the Oregon Department of Transportation’s Short Term Work Zones Manual. Where further protection is needed, barriers shall be utilized. At night, warning lights shall be prominently displayed, and excavated areas shall be enclosed with protective barricades.

(b)

Once a work area has been established, it shall be the employer’s responsibility to provide adequate supervision and periodic surveillance to assure that the above requirements are met.

(3)

Before work is performed on overhead lines, underground (such as in manholes), or in buried plants, the employer or designated representative shall make a complete evaluation of the work location to determine if a hazard exists or could be created in the performance of the work. The employer or designated representative shall determine from this evaluation, a safe procedure for performing the work and those means or methods shall be implemented before the work proceeds. Examples of possible worksite conditions that may be hazardous include, but are not limited to:

(a)

Manhole, pit, and pole locations, street intersections, alleys and isolated areas;

(b)

Weather and road conditions (such as ice, snow, and rain);

(c)

Visibility;

(d)

Time of day;

(e)

Manhole atmosphere conditions (such as explosive gases, exhaust fumes, and oxygen deficiency);

(f)

Jointly occupied manholes with foreign utilities; and

(g)

Power hazards.

(4)

All equipment, tools, and safety devices shall be installed, used and operated in accordance with the manufacturer’s recommendations and operating instructions and its listing or labeling.

(5)

Rubber insulating equipment.

(a)

Rubber insulating equipment designed for the voltage levels to be encountered shall be provided and the employer shall ensure that they are used by employees as required by OAR 437, Division 2/R, 1910.268, Telecommunications.

(b)

Rubber insulating equipment shall meet the electrical and physical requirements contained in ASTM Standard D-120-87, “Standard Specifications for Rubber Insulating Gloves,” and ASTM Standard D 1048-88(a), “Standard Specifications for Rubber Insulating Blankets,” with the exception that:

(A)

The maximum proof test current for a 14-inch Class I glove shall be no more than 14 mA; and with the further exception that:

(B)

Existing 14-inch Class I rubber gloves that meet a maximum proof test current of 16 mA and a minimum breakdown voltage of 17,000 volts (RMS) acquired prior to July 1, 1975 may be used as long as these gloves comply with the retest requirements of paragraph (f)(5) of 1910.268.

(c)

Patching rubber goods is prohibited; rubber protective equipment shall not be vulcanized or patched.

(d)

Rubber gloves for workers. A pair of approved rubber gloves and bag shall be assigned to each worker when workers are required to work on or be exposed to energized parts.

(6)

Equipment.

(a)

Ladder hooks. When ladder hooks are engaged the safety straps shall be lashed around the top rung and strand or otherwise secured to the strand.

(b)

Chain saw usage.

(A)

Chain saws shall be inspected prior to use and kept in good repair at all times. Saws with defective parts shall not be used.

(B)

Chain saw engines shall be shut off while being fueled.

(C)

Chain saws shall be equipped with an automatic throttle control which will return the engine to idling speed upon release of the throttle.

(D)

All employees using chain saws shall wear flexible ballistic nylon pads or other equivalent protection sewn or otherwise fastened to the trousers, which will protect the legs from the thigh to below the knee, except when working from an aerial lift device.

(E)

Chain saws shall not be brought into a bucket or work platform of an aerial lift device. Saws shall be carried on the outside of the aerial lift device. Chain saws shall be started and used only outside of the aerial lift device.

(7)

Training. The employer shall see that employees who operate derricks and cranes are properly trained as required in OAR 437, Division 2/N, OAR 437-002-0229 (Additional Oregon Rules for Overhead and Gantry Cranes)(2), Crane Operator Training Requirements.

(8)

Handling poles near energized power conductors.

(a)

Insulating gloves shall be worn when handling the pole with either hands or tools, when there exists a possibility that the pole may contact a power conductor. Where the voltage to the ground of the power conductor exceeds 15kV to ground, Class II gloves (as defined in ASTM D1048-88a shall be used. For voltages not exceeding 15kV to ground, insulating gloves shall have a breakdown voltage of at least 17kV.

(b)

The guard or insulating material used to protect the pole shall meet the appropriate 3 minute proof test voltage requirements contained in ASTM D 1048-88a.

(9)

Fiber optic/lightwave transmission.

(a)

Only qualified employees shall install, service, maintain or use lightwave test equipment.

(b)

Employees shall avoid eye exposure to emissions from unterminated energized optical connectors.

(c)

Employees shall not look into vacant regenerator slots with an optical instrument.

(d)

Employees should not examine or look into broken, severed, or disconnected fiber optic cables.

(e)

Lightwave emissions may only be viewed with an indirect image converting device.

(f)

Microscopes, magnifying glasses and eye loupes shall not be used to examine energized fiber optic cables.

(g)

Lightguide terminals must be tagged “Do Not Energize” when splicing technicians are restoring a damaged system.

(10)

Reserved.

(11)

Additional definitions in Oregon.

(a)

“Clearance:"

(A)

For working on, means the certification by the property authority that a specified line or piece of equipment is deenergized; that the proper precautionary measures have been taken and that the line or equipment is being turned over to the workers.

(B)

From hazard, means adequate separation or protection by the use of protective devices to prevent accidental contact by persons or objects on approach to a point of danger.

(b)

“Climbing space” — The vertical space reserved along the side of poles or structures to permit ready access for linemen to equipment and conductors located on poles or structures.

(c)

“Communication plant” — The conductors and their associated equipment required to provide public or private signals or communicative service.

(d)

“Competent or qualified person” — A person who is familiar with the construction of, or operation of, such lines and/or equipment that concerns his or her position and who is fully aware of the hazards connected therewith or one who has passed a journeyman’s examination for the particular branch of the trades with which he or she may be connected.

(e)

“Emergency” — When an unusual condition exists that endangers life and/or property.

(f)

“Foreman or Person-in-charge” — That person directly in charge of workers doing the work regardless of title.

(g)

“Grounding” — The act of placing shorts and grounds on conductors and equipment for the purpose of protecting workers from dangerous voltages while working on such lines or equipment.

(h)

“Guard or guarded” — Covered, shielded, fenced, enclosed, or otherwise protected by means of suitable covers, casings, barriers, rails, screens, mats, platforms, or warning signs or devices which are suitable to remove the possibility of dangerous contact on approach by other persons or objects to a point of danger.

(i)

“Manlift equipment” — Such types of portable truck-mounted equipment as mechanical, electric or hydraulic ladders and boom-mounted buckets or cages.

(j)

“Protection from hazardous voltage” — The isolation from or deenergizing of equipment to prevent accidental contact by persons or objects on approach to point of danger.

(k)

“Protective devices” — Those devices such as rubber gloves, rubber blankets, line hose, rubber hoods or other insulating devices, which are specially designed for the protection of workers.

(l)

“Public highway” — Land, road, street, boulevard, and every way or place in the state open as matter of right to public vehicular travel, both inside and outside the limit of cities and towns.

(m)

“Sheath” — As applied to sharp tools, a case that effectively covers the tool.

(n)

“Voltage communications” — Voltage used for electronic communications equipment to which workers or protective equipment may be subjected.

(A)

“High” — Over 600 volts to ground — RMS AC or DC or over 1,000 volts RMS across bare parts.

(B)

“Medium high” — 151 to 600 volts to ground — RMS AC or DC or 301 to 1,000 volts RMS AC across any bare parts.

(o)

“Voltage electric supply” — The maximum effective line voltage to which the workers or protective equipment may be subjected.

(A)

“Low” — Includes voltages from 100 to 600 volts.

(B)

“High” — Those voltages in excess of 600 volts.

Source: Rule 437-002-0316 — Oregon Rules for Telecommunications, https://secure.­sos.­state.­or.­us/oard/view.­action?ruleNumber=437-002-0316.

437‑002‑0005
Adoption by Reference 437‑002‑0006
General Oregon Definitions 437‑002‑0007
Testing and Certification 437‑002‑0010
Adoption by Reference 437‑002‑0015
Adoption by Reference 437‑002‑0020
Adoption by Reference 437‑002‑0022
Additional Oregon General Requirements 437‑002‑0026
Portable Ladders 437‑002‑0032
Ramps and Runways 437‑002‑0033
Piers and Wharves 437‑002‑0040
Adoption by Reference 437‑002‑0041
Exits and Exit Routes 437‑002‑0042
Emergency Action Plan 437‑002‑0043
Fire Prevention Plan 437‑002‑0047
Working Near Overhead High Voltage Lines and Equipment 437‑002‑0060
Adoption by Reference 437‑002‑0080
Adoption by Reference 437‑002‑0081
Oregon Ventilation Regulations 437‑002‑0095
Audiometric Testing in Oregon 437‑002‑0098
Additional Applicability 437‑002‑0100
Adoption by Reference 437‑002‑0101
Oregon Start-Up Dates 437‑002‑0107
Spray Finishing 437‑002‑0109
Explosives and Blasting Agents 437‑002‑0118
Oregon Rules for Reinforced Plastics Manufacturing 437‑002‑0119
Oregon Effective Dates 437‑002‑0120
Adoption by Reference 437‑002‑0122
Dipping and Coating 437‑002‑0134
Personal Protective Equipment 437‑002‑0139
Working Underway on Water. 437‑002‑0140
Adoption by Reference 437‑002‑0141
Additional Oregon Sanitation Requirements 437‑002‑0142
Labor Camps 437‑002‑0144
Additional Oregon Rules for General Environmental Controls 437‑002‑0145
Additional Oregon Rules for Accident Prevention and Tags 437‑002‑0146
Confined Spaces 437‑002‑0154
Individual Locks 437‑002‑0161
Medical Services and First Aid 437‑002‑0170
Worker Protection Standard 437‑002‑0180
Adoption by Reference 437‑002‑0182
Oregon Rules for Fire Fighters 437‑002‑0187
Portable Fire Extinguishers 437‑002‑0200
Adoption by Reference 437‑002‑0210
Additional Oregon Rules for Compressed Air and Compressed Gas Equipment 437‑002‑0220
Adoption by Reference 437‑002‑0221
Additional Oregon Rules for Handling Materials 437‑002‑0223
Oregon Rules for Commercial and Industrial Vehicles 437‑002‑0227
Additional Oregon Rules for Powered Industrial Trucks 437‑002‑0228
Oregon General Requirements for Cranes 437‑002‑0229
Additional Oregon Rules for Overhead and Gantry Cranes 437‑002‑0230
Additional Oregon Rule for Crawler, Locomotive and Truck Cranes 437‑002‑0232
Additional Oregon Rule for Derricks 437‑002‑0233
Oregon Rules for Hammerhead Cranes 437‑002‑0235
Additional Oregon Rule for Slings 437‑002‑0240
Adoption by Reference 437‑002‑0242
Oregon Rules for Machinery and Machine Guarding 437‑002‑0256
Stationary Compactors, Self-Contained Compactors, and Balers 437‑002‑0260
Adoption by Reference 437‑002‑0262
Additional Definitions in Oregon 437‑002‑0264
Additional General Requirements for Hand Tools 437‑002‑0266
Additional Oregon Rules for Guarding Portable Powered Tools 437‑002‑0268
Oregon Rules for Hand-Powered Equipment 437‑002‑0280
Adoption by Reference 437‑002‑0282
Job Planning and Layout 437‑002‑0283
Eye Protection and Protective Clothing 437‑002‑0284
Specifications for Protectors 437‑002‑0285
Special Precautions 437‑002‑0286
Preservative Coatings 437‑002‑0287
Toxic Preservative Coatings 437‑002‑0288
Health Protection and Ventilation — General 437‑002‑0297
Welding or Cutting Containers 437‑002‑0298
Self-Contained Units 437‑002‑0300
Adoption by Reference 437‑002‑0301
Scope and Application 437‑002‑0302
Definitions 437‑002‑0303
Training and Work Planning 437‑002‑0304
First Aid Requirements 437‑002‑0305
Traffic Control 437‑002‑0306
Electrical Hazards 437‑002‑0307
Personal Protective Equipment 437‑002‑0308
Portable Power Tools 437‑002‑0309
Hand Tools 437‑002‑0310
Work Procedures 437‑002‑0311
Mobile Equipment 437‑002‑0312
Oregon Rules for Pulp, Paper and Paperboard Mills 437‑002‑0313
Additional Oregon Rules for Sawmills 437‑002‑0314
Veneer and Plywood Machinery 437‑002‑0315
Shake and Shingle Machinery 437‑002‑0316
Oregon Rules for Telecommunications 437‑002‑0320
Adoption by Reference. 437‑002‑0340
Adoption by Reference 437‑002‑0342
Additional Oregon Definition 437‑002‑0345
Inland Emergency Aid 437‑002‑0355
Air Supply Systems (Compressed Gases and Air) 437‑002‑0360
Adoption by Reference 437‑002‑0363
Oregon Amendment 437‑002‑0364
Oregon Rules for MOCA (4,4’-Methylene Bis (2-chloroaniline)) 437‑002‑0368
Deterioration 437‑002‑0371
Scope and Application 437‑002‑0373
Oregon Rules for Thiram 437‑002‑0377
Additional Oregon Rules for Hazard Communication 437‑002‑0378
Oregon Rules for Pipe Labelling 437‑002‑0382
Oregon Rules for Air Contaminants 437‑002‑0390
Oregon Effective Dates 437‑002‑0391
Additional Oregon Rules for Carcinogens in Laboratories 437‑002‑1001
Asbestos Respiratory Protection Program 437‑002‑1017
Vinyl Chloride Respiratory Protection Program 437‑002‑1018
Inorganic Arsenic Respiratory Protection Program 437‑002‑1025
Lead Respiratory Protection Program 437‑002‑1027
Cadmium Respiratory Protection Program 437‑002‑1028
Benzene Respiratory Protection Program 437‑002‑1029
Coke Oven Emissions Respiratory Protection Program 437‑002‑1030
Additional Oregon Rules for Bloodborne Pathogens 437‑002‑1035
Oregon Rule for Sharps Injury Log 437‑002‑1043
Cotton Dust Respiratory Protection Program 437‑002‑1044
1,2-Dibromo-3-Chloropropane Respiratory Protection Program 437‑002‑1045
Acrylonitrile Respiratory Protection Program 437‑002‑1047
Ethylene Oxide Respiratory Protection Program 437‑002‑1048
Formaldehyde Respiratory Protection Program 437‑002‑1050
Methylenedianiline Respiratory Protection Program 437‑002‑1051
1,3-Butadiene Respiratory Protection Program 437‑002‑1052
Methylene Chloride Respiratory Protection Program 437‑002‑1053
Scope and Application 437‑002‑1054
Definitions 437‑002‑1055
Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) 437‑002‑1056
Exposure Assessment 437‑002‑1057
Specified exposure control methods 437‑002‑1058
Regulated and Restricted Access Areas 437‑002‑1059
Methods of Compliance 437‑002‑1060
Respiratory Protection 437‑002‑1061
Housekeeping 437‑002‑1062
Medical Surveillance 437‑002‑1063
Communication of Respirable Crystalline Silica Hazards to Employees 437‑002‑1064
Recordkeeping 437‑002‑1065
Dates 437‑002‑1139
Working Over or In Water 437‑002‑2021
Additional Oregon Definitions 437‑002‑2022
Additional Oregon Rules for Powered Platforms 437‑002‑2024
Scope and Application 437‑002‑2025
Definitions 437‑002‑2026
Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) 437‑002‑2027
Rope Descent & Rope Access Systems 437‑002‑2028
Regulated and Restricted Access Areas 437‑002‑2029
Methods of Compliance 437‑002‑2030
Respiratory Protection 437‑002‑2031
Delayed Effective Dates for Walking-Working Surfaces 437‑002‑2032
Hygiene Areas and Practices 437‑002‑2033
Housekeeping 437‑002‑2034
Medical Surveillance 437‑002‑2035
Medical Removal 437‑002‑2036
Communication of Beryllium Hazards to Employees 437‑002‑2037
Recordkeeping 437‑002‑2038
Dates 437‑002‑2040
Exposure Assessment 437‑002‑2045
Personal Protective Clothing and Equipment 437‑002‑2101
Compressed Gases (General Requirements) 437‑002‑2102
Acetylene 437‑002‑2224
Vehicle Drivers and Riders 437‑002‑2225
Vehicles for Highway and Road Operation Characteristics and Maintenance 437‑002‑2226
Vehicles for Use on Property Other Than Public Roads and Highways Operation, Characteristics and Maintenance 437‑002‑2253
Oxygen-fuel Gas Welding and Cutting 437‑002‑2300
General 437‑002‑2301
Medical Services and First Aid 437‑002‑2302
Job Briefing 437‑002‑2303
Hazardous Energy Control Procedures 437‑002‑2304
Enclosed Spaces 437‑002‑2305
Excavations 437‑002‑2306
Personal Protective Equipment 437‑002‑2307
Portable Ladders and Platforms 437‑002‑2308
Hand and Portable Power Equipment 437‑002‑2309
Live-line Tools 437‑002‑2310
Materials Handling and Storage 437‑002‑2311
Working On or Near Exposed Energized Parts 437‑002‑2312
Deenergizing Lines and Equipment for Employee Protection 437‑002‑2313
Grounding for the Protection of Employees 437‑002‑2314
Testing and Test Facilities 437‑002‑2315
Mechanical Equipment 437‑002‑2316
Overhead Lines 437‑002‑2317
Line-clearance Tree Trimming 437‑002‑2318
Communication Facilities 437‑002‑2319
Underground Electrical Installations 437‑002‑2320
Substations 437‑002‑2321
Power Generation Installations 437‑002‑2322
Special Conditions 437‑002‑2323
Helicopters 437‑002‑2324
Definitions
Last Updated

Jun. 8, 2021

Rule 437-002-0316’s source at or​.us