SAFETY GUIDELINES FOR IRON & STEEL SECTOR

MINISTRY OF STEEL, STORAGE, HANDLING Doc. No: SG/01

1. Objective

This guideline is meant for safe storage, handling and use of gas cylinders in the
steel industry for protection against various hazards such as Fire / Explosion / Gas
Leak / Bursting of Gas Cylinders/ hit by cylinders.

2. Scope

This guideline applies to all Works and project sites of Iron & Steel companies.
Medical gas cylinders are not covered in the scope of this guideline.

3. Procedure

3.1 Definitions

Cylinder: any closed metal container having a volume exceeding 500 ml but not
exceeding 1,000 litres intended for the storage and transport of compressed gas,
including any liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) container/ compressed natural gas
(CNG) cylinder fitted to a motor vehicle as its fuel tank but not including any other
such container fitted to a special transport or under-carriage and includes a
composite cylinder, however, the water capacity of cylinders used for storage of
CNG, nitrogen, compressed air, etc. may exceed 1,000 litres up to 2,500 litres
provided the diameter of such cylinder does not exceed 60 cm.

3.2 License Requirement as per Statutory Provisions:

i) No person shall fill any cylinder with compressed gas and no cylinder filled with
compressed gas shall be possessed by anyone except under and in accordance
with the conditions of a licence granted under these rules. The licensee shall be
responsible, for all operations connected with the filling and possession of
cylinders in the licensed premises.
ii) No license needed for possession in certain cases as per Rule-44 of Gas
Cylinder Rules, 2016.
a) Possession of any cylinder filled with a compressed gas by a carrier or other
person for the purpose of transport in accordance with the provisions of these
rules;
b) Possession of cylinders for own use and not meant for sale or trading filled with –

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· Any other flammable but non-toxic gas when the total number of cylinders
containing such gas does not exceed 25 or the total weight of gas does not
exceed 200 kg., whichever is less, at a time;
· Any non-flammable non-toxic gas when the total number of such cylinders
does not exceed 200 at a time;
· Any toxic gas when the total quantity of such cylinders does not exceed 5 at a
time;
· Acetylene gas contained in cylinder in dissolved state when the total quantity
of such cylinder does not exceed twenty five at a time.
The provisions of sub-clause 44(b) shall not be applicable for liquefied petroleum
gas when the total quantity of gas does not exceed 100 kg at a time for own use,
distribution or sale from a sales room belonging to the dealer or distributor of
respective oil marketing company.
Notwithstanding anything contained in rule 43, licence shall not be obligatory for
working places where LPG cylinders are directly connected to the manifold, but
the requirements of IS :6044 Part-1 shall be complied with ,such manifold
installations and shall be constructed adapting the sound engineering practices
and the quantity of the LPG at any point of the time shall not exceed the limits
prescribed in IS-6044 Part-1.

3.3 General Safety Precautions for Storage of Cylinders

i) The gas cylinder storage shed must be located in an isolated area, as far as
practicable.
ii) The gas cylinder storage shed shall have roofing to protect from direct sunlight
and have adequate ventilation.
iii) Gas cylinders shall not be stored in exits or egress routes.
iv) Gas cylinders shall not be stored in damp areas, near salt or corrosive
chemicals, fumes, heat or in areas having exposure to the weather.
v) The gas cylinder storage shed shall not be located close to any inflammable
chemicals / fuel storage area / source of combustion activities / open flames /
steam pipes.
vi) Full and empty cylinders are to be stored separately.
vii) The gas cylinders shall be stored in segregated manner, considering
incompatibility [example bulk DA ( Dissolved Acetylene) & bulk Oxygen; bulk
Hydrogen & bulk Oxygen, bulk LPG & bulk Oxygen, toxic and flammable gas
cylinders]. Incompatible gas cylinders must be stored at least at a gap of 3
meters.
viii) Incompatible gas cylinders must not be transported together.
ix) The store in-charge / supervisor shall maintain the up-to-date inventory of Gas
cylinders.

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x) Other than notified gas cylinders, no other material of any kind shall be stored
inside the area.
xi) All the gas cylinders shall be kept in upright position with chaining to prevent
accidental fall.
xii) A system of marking of gas cylinders for their individual identification & record
of their hydrostatic test to be maintained by custodian deptt.
xiii) All gas cylinders shall be capped when not in use.
xiv) All gas cylinders shall be stored so that cylinders are used in the order in which
they are received.
xv) The gas cylinder storage area shall not have any loose electrical cables, wires
or lines in the vicinity.
xvi) Do not keep cylinders in battery room or oil storage room.
xvii) Adequate warning signs / labeling / no smoking caution / safety instructions
shall be displayed in the gas cylinder storage area in legible manner.
xviii) Display of Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) of the stored gas to be done at
appropriate place in legible & in local language/ English.
xix) Avoid storing cylinders in confined location with improper ventilation.
xx) Oxygen and Fuel cylinders shall be kept separately.
xxi) Restrict entry to the cellar, allowing only trained persons to enter and work
there.
xxii) Clean up spillages immediately to prevent slipping hazards.
xxiii) Ensure the cellar has adequate lighting.
xxiv) Avoid placing cylinders on uneven surface. The cylinder may fall, causing injury
or damage.
xxv) Explosive gases like hydrogen to be stored in separate sheds with proper
fencing as per the guidelines.
xxvi) Acetylene and LPG must never be stacked horizontally in storage or in use.
xxvii)Regularly check for leakages, if any.
xxviii) Depending on the properties of gases stored, maintain proper temperature in
the storage area, avoiding excessive or low temperature build up.

3.4 Handling and Usage

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