NiSource contractor requirements

1. Which network NiSource uses

ISNetworld (ISN). NiSource’s contractor page says that, depending on the type of work, contractors may be required to join ISNetworld before work starts, and points to its Contractor Health, Safety and Environmental Manual for details. The manual says contractors selected for medium or high-risk work, and others NiSource deems necessary, must join ISN before the start of work, and that NiSource will tell contractors when an account is required.

2. What the sources say contractors must do

• Pass before the award. Contractors required to join ISN should obtain approval or a passing grade under NiSource’s safety and environmental requirements before a contract is awarded. The manual does not publish the minimum grade.
• 30 days after an unacceptable grade. If a contractor fails to attain or keep a grade that meets NiSource’s current prequalification criteria, the NiSource business unit must issue a variance within 30 days of confirming the unacceptable grade. Without an acceptable grade or an approved variance in that time, NiSource may stop work with the contractor.
• RAVS Plus. NiSource encourages contractors to join ISN’s RAVS Plus program to improve their score.
• Written programs in ISN. Contractors keep written safety programs for their work, managed in ISN, for example heat illness prevention, confined spaces, lockout tagout, hearing conservation, hot work, spill prevention, asbestos awareness and silica exposure control.
• Monthly reporting. All medium and high-risk contractors report total hours worked, near misses, first aid cases, OSHA recordable injuries and lost-time injuries from NiSource work in ISN’s Site Tracker every month.
• Subcontractors. A contractor that hires subcontractors needs a subcontractor safety management plan, which covers reviewing their programs and their statistics, such as TRIR and EMR, before selecting them. Where it applies, the plan is entered in ISN before the subcontractor starts on a NiSource site.
• Operator qualification. Contractors performing a DOT operator qualification covered task under 49 CFR Part 192 Subpart N on a NiSource facility must keep a written plan for their OQ program. Failing these requirements can stop the work immediately.
• Orientation. All contractor personnel complete a contractor safety orientation, run by the contractor or by NiSource depending on the job. At generation stations, workers complete the Generation Station Contractor Safety Orientation before work and every year after.
• Safety staffing. Medium or high-risk work with 40 or more people on a single shift, subcontractors included, needs a full-time contractor safety professional, plus one more for every additional 100 people on site. Smaller crews appoint an on-site safety representative.
• Environmental training. The environmental section asks for at least one crew member on site who has completed NiSource’s Environmental Policy Training, renewed every year.

The page lists a contractor field safety mailbox for questions, and the manual lists contacts for OQ plans. The manual we read does not set insurance limits; those come with your contract.

3. The yearly dates that apply

The ISNetworld renewal checklist explains the network and OSHA dates and shows their sources.

• On or before the anniversary of your ISN activation date: pay the annual fee to renew ISNetworld (ISN User Agreement).
• Every month: hours and incident counts in ISN Site Tracker, if your work is medium or high-risk.
• February 1, until April 30: post the OSHA 300A summary, if you must keep OSHA injury and illness records (OSHA 29 CFR 1904.32).
• March 2: submit the 300A to OSHA online, if your establishment is covered (OSHA 29 CFR 1904.41).
• Within 30 days of an unacceptable grade: an acceptable grade or an approved variance.
• Every year: the generation station orientation, if you work at one, and the Environmental Policy Training for at least one crew member.
• Your own dates for this client: the expiry of your insurance, your written programs’ reviews and your workers’ operator qualifications.

Our guide ISNetworld grades explained covers what ISN itself publishes about grades.

4. Confirm with NiSource

Requirements change. The page says all its contents are subject to change. The manual shows a last revision of April 1, 2024, and its FAQ gives October 1, 2024 as the effective date. Before you rely on any item here, confirm it with NiSource and in your ISNetworld account.

Other operators: PG&E, Spire, Kinder Morgan, EQT, or all operator pages.

5. Sources

Every source was opened on October 14, 2026.

• NiSource, Contractor Health, Safety and Environmental Information (no date on the page).
• NiSource, Contractor Health, Safety and Environmental Manual 3.0 (PDF; last revised 4/1/2024).
• NiSource, Manual 3.0 FAQ (PDF; gives the April 1, 2024 launch and October 1, 2024 effective dates).
• ISNetworld, User Agreement for contractors and suppliers (no date on the page).
• OSHA, 29 CFR 1904.32 and 29 CFR 1904.41.

PrequalReady is not affiliated with NiSource, ISNetworld, Avetta, Veriforce or any hiring client. Their names belong to their owners.

6. Keep it in one workspace

PrequalReady is a workspace that keeps each hiring client’s requirements, your documents and every expiry date in one place, and emails reminders before your dates. It does not log in to ISNetworld for you, it does not read your grade, and it does not judge whether your documents are acceptable. It is free during early access. Keeping many contractors qualified? See the consultant view.

Start with the free checklist: the items hiring clients most often ask for, with their sources and the yearly dates, and NiSource already filled in. No account; nothing is sent anywhere.