I am currently doing a renovation that involves lots of staging and work over forty feet. I have two fall protection harnesses that I want to employ, but have not used them before, and don’t have instruction manuals. Any advice on tying off and rigging would be appreciated, or does anyone know where I can find a rigging diagram?
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OSHA
The best employee you can have but you wouldn't want him as a neighbor " He the shifty type"
LOL, your tag line is a perfect fit to your comment on this one, man.
Another great source would be your comp insurance agency or underwriter. Theyu are alwys trying to reduce claims through safety education.
On a related side note question, I just got notice from my provider that I need to send them a copy of my fall protection policy. Does anyone have any boilerplate?.
Excellence is its own reward!
A google search on "fall protection policy" shows that there are a number on the web - the problem is that they are almost all from universities, so are a bit verbose. A couple of examples that perhaps you can cut and past some appropriate boiler plate (writing policy was always one of my least favorate activities, so have fun...):
http://www.easternct.edu/depts/env_saf/Page12.html
http://www.ehs.ufl.edu/General/fallprot.htm
http://www.lehigh.edu/~inehs/occupational/fallpol.html
http://www.umt.edu/research/eh/pdf/fallprotectionpolicy.pdf
Ain't that Mr Google something!
Thanks, now on to editing.
Excellence is its own reward!
When perfected, be sure to post this editorial wonder so that we can all rip...er, admire it...
OK, piffin, time to show and tell on your fall protection policy. You do have it written don't you...
unfortunatey the most reliable fall arrest device also does the most damage to you!!!!!!
Yeah, although there have been authenticated reports of people falling several thousand feet out of airplanes and getting up and walking away because they managed to hit some really soft earth. I wouldn't want to count on it, however.
there have been authenticated reports of people falling several thousand feet out of airplanes and getting up and walking away because they managed to hit some really soft earth. I wouldn't want to count on it, however.
me neither.
Jeeze, you're worse than my agent.
No, I have been doing productive work instead.
I'll go ahead and hit subscribe so I can find this thread again though to post it later..
Excellence is its own reward!
In the olden days, before alpinists had the equipment and techniques to effectively belay leader falls, falling was simply forbidden. A bad fall risked killing both the leader and the belayer. No gentleman would wish to endanger his companions, so the leader climbed very carefully, taking no chances.
Think your insurance company would buy that as a fall safety policy?
If you'd like, I can email you a fall protection plan I wrote for a job I did some time ago in Tennessee. It's pretty comprehensive, but some of the conditions are site specific.
I'd love to see it before I write mine..
Excellence is its own reward!
Your anchor point(s) need to be rated for 5200 pounds, minimum. Use a shock absorbing lanyard. Attach lanyard above you, not below, to minimize fall distance. Use only attaching gear meant for fall protection service, pad with carpet any webbing around building steel. Beware of angle attachment which will cause v to swing into building. The newer equipment has a retractor on harness that keeps cable or web taunt, limiting shock.
Inspect gear before each wearing for wear or defects.
Keep in mind your workers will be more productive with good gear.
Coastal Video has an excellent tape you can rent (<$100) that hits the high points.
Look in yellow pages for safety supplies and have one of the big guys come out with the factory rep.
Lastly do not allow workers to wear fall protection on the ground with lanyard over shoulder. Saw picture series of guy wound up in 24" shaft when lanyard became entangled.
For some diagrams click on the "figures A, B, and C" in the section on Fall Protection at the following web site:
http://www.labsafety.com/refinfo/ezfacts/ezf130.htm
There might be some additional information to be found on the OHSA page:
http://www.osha-slc.gov/SLTC/constructionfallprotection/index.html
I would suggest you call Bailey's, 1-800-322-4539, ask for their Catalog, and while you are on the phone with them, go ahead and order The Tree Climbers Companion. I found it to be a life saver Literaly, ie the knot tying. Also, head on down to your local Outdoor store, find info on climbing (rock). I just happened to start a new "hobby", that is climbing, and sectioning 80' tall pine trees, I can't seem to remember the last time, that I was, as scared as I was last week. As you already know, don't ever hurry to get home, don't work with someone who pisses you off, and get down when you are tired, or hopefully before. Double and triple check everything, and have some fun while you are up there, I know I did, that is, when I wasn't hugging that tree
The type of work you are doing will dictate what precautions you must take. Some areas of work may not afford a proper anchor point. For instance, carpenters errecting trusses. This is called leading edge work and in your fall protection plan you can specify how you intend to provide safety and training. When you can anchor, you need to make sure that you use the correct size and number of screws, lags or bolts, and they have to be intellegently placed. Not on a couple of lightly braced truss with sheetrock screws for example. In roofing work you could anchor at the ridge and run lead lines down for the crew but somebody has to place the anchor. In cases like this you need training as much as gear. The harness is designed to help arrest a fall so one of the most important issues is keeping the "chain" tight and above you. There are also different size and type harnesses and they should be fit to the man/woman. That makes for a good safety meeting. Write it down, take attendance and have folks try them on. Very interesting. Everything associated with the harness should be used for that purpose only. Don't use a lead rope for tying off a ladder. There may be training seminars through the Department of Labor in your state. Vocational schools may also be a local source of info.
You might visit the OSHA website at http://www.osha.gov , then do a site search , keywords "fall protection". Another thought is to do a web search for FALL PROTECTION PRODUCTS. In a previous life, I used Miller fall arrest systems daily .( full body harness, shock absorbing lanyard, etc.) If I'm not mistaken, they have a company website that features some information on the use of their products.