What you don’t know EHS Management System

about “Fall Protection”

could leave you hanging
Element 10.0
– or even worse!!! “Fall Protection!”
Did you know that donning a Safety
Harness should always be the last
option for “Working at Heights”?
The first step to “Fall Protection”
is “Fall Prevention” - eliminating
the need to work above!
1. Engineer the hazard out!
Can the task be eliminated?
Can the work be brought to ground level?
2. Reduce the risk!
Can Fall Protection equipment such as
handrails, a platform with handrails,
scissorlift, JLG, scaffold, or a Fall
Restraint System be used?
3. Last Option
- Personal Fall Arrest System!
Safety Harness and shock absorbing lanyard.
(Might save you from hitting the ground –
but not from falling!)
Classic safety example from the Utility Companies for
changing bulbs on utility poles - Progressed from
climbing poles using a safety belt, to using a boom,
to lowering the light assembly to ground level!
Safety Lanyards!
“Shock Absorber” vs. “Turbo Fall Limiter”
A “Shock Absorber” lanyard allows you
to actually fall, then has 3.5’ of stored
material to slow your fall as it’s extends.
A “Turbo Fall Limiter” retractable
lanyard ‘locks like a seatbelt’ with
sudden movement, or rapid line
extraction to prevent you from falling.
So, how high would a 6’ person
need to be to safely use a 6’
“Shocker Absorber” Lanyard?
A 6’ person, using a 6’ lanyard, with 3.5’ of shock
absorber, allowing for 1’ of stretch, and a 2’
safety margin would need at least 18.5’ of ground
clearance to use safely!!!
And that’s if the harness,
connections, and anchorage
are all being used correctly!
Please use the right equipment!
What’s the difference
between the high flying
guys in these photos?
Of course one is a lot higher,
however BOTH are depending on
their “Fall Protection” to keep them
safe – so they BOTH have to work!
That means both guys have to:
Be properly trained,
Know how to use the equipment,
Know the limitations of their equipment,
Inspect their equipment properly,
Always use their equipment properly,
Maintain their equipment properly.
Evaluate the hazards and risks of each
task.
Would you use a parachute, that’s
been lying on a floor, in a locker,
without fully inspecting it… then
throw it back into a locker, on the
floor, until the next use?!
Would you do this with a
Safety Harness and lanyard?!