Construction Safety: Most Common Fall Protection Mistakes

Every decision in the fall protection industry can make a world of difference between injury and death. The following fall protection mistakes are common but can also be avoided.

Harnesses do not fit properly

Modern full-body harnesses can be fitted with all sorts of tools and accessories to meet the demands of any job. No matter in which field you work, be it construction, wind energy, ironwork or telecom, these harnesses enable workers to get the job done as safe and quick.

In case of a fall, the forces from the fall arrest are distributed throughout the body to ensure that there is minimal injury. But even fall protection harnesses are not perfect. If it is used improperly, or when a faulty system is selected then the use of fall protection can be just as dangerous as no protection at all!.

Properly donning and adjusting your fall protection harness could be the difference between life and death. Check a harness for damage before you put it on each time. — inspect the harness for worn, frayed or missing threads, cracked webbing or any foreign material on the body side of the harness.

Put it out of service if any damage is obvious.

There are different styles of harnesses, refer to the manufacturer’s instructions on how to wear a harness for your specific harness.

How to suit up a standard vest place style harness:

Hold the harness by the rear D-ring and give it a quick shake to let the straps fall into place.
-Loosen all buckles and unbutton front caging over your shoulders, as a jacket
Waist belt (if available)

· The leg bands should as well be attached. · Connect the waist belt for your body size. Secure the legs straps tight enough that you can slip two fingers between the webbing and your legs. The strap should not allow you to get your whole hand around it; if it does, adjust the straps.

-Adjust the padded shoulder straps.

Connect and slide the chest strap · ·

· Loosen all buckles to the same general snugness and comfort within limits.

Misuse of Leading Edge SRL’s

Leading-edge SRL is an ANSI Z359. 14 standard. This requirement includes unique provisions for advanced applications, and also a slip at the same level trips. A Leading edge SRL is constructed of durable cable components to minimize the opportunity of the unit shearing over an edge and has a built-in energy absorbing shock pack to help limit fall arrest forces.

In leading-edge applications, the use of normal self-retracting lifelines is common practice and creates a serious hazard to workers at height.

Remember the following when it comes to leading-edge applications:

Make sure your equipment (SRL) is leading-edge rated It should include that the worker has an energy absorber in his body so it reduces fall arrest forces on the body a lot. Follow the manufacturer instructions on how to properly use a leading-edge SRL.
Look at other solutions when you are talking close to leading-edge applications. Many times the risk of a well hazard can be eliminated entirely by not allowing your employees to ever get anywhere near that potential danger. Often, this can be achieved by putting your workers on restraint with a basic rope and rope grab. When used as intended, this will free workers up to work at the edge but still hold them from falling over the edge. It can be a surprise to some when they see the most brand new products in possibly all of fall protection sometimes, really being as simple and safe as it gets.
Ensure all employees are qualified, and know about the hazards associated with top-edge devices and limitations of mechanical equipment.
Before any work is carried out on site, it is prudent to have an expert examine the safety of a particular person.

Lack of Training

OSHA fall protection training is mandated by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to protect all individuals working at heights. Having your employees train hand on will ensure they know how to use any of this equipment when they get out to on the job site. The construction industry has the highest rate of fatalities caused due to falls from height. The single most frequently violated OSHA citation is fall protection.

Because a fall can happen in the blink of an eye for any worker working at height for any amount of time, falling tool risks are a serious concern. Ensuring employees are well versed in how to avoid falls and properly use the equipment allows them to be generally more prepared, better informed, and ultimately more likely to comply with safety rules when they find themselves working at height.

This training, done either on the jobsite or at a trainer’s facility is not intended to be more than watching videos and signing off on a roster. This is why at Safety Counselling, we have different time frames for our training programs. At Jarrimber Wood we provide certified staff who are experienced and can offer you training so that when completing training, at your site or ours, you walk away feeling sure of your safety.

To learn more about our training programs, check out our Training Page or give us a call today at 505-881-8111.

No Rescue Plan

Again, simply worded a rescue plan is the procedure of execution and awareness to recover an injured worker in any sort of confined space, free fall or de-gassing risky episode due to which the life has been fallen helpless.serial port monitor)NULL reference — however this has not so far occurred to date. A rescue plan, and having every person on a job site trained in that plan could mean the difference between life and death. Creating rescue plans for each worksite is integral to workplace safety. It may seem like a lot of effort to create and know the rescue plan for every job site, but if a worker needs rescuing no time can be spared.

Why can’t I have a single rescue plan that will work for all of my job sites? You don’t repeat the same process over and over to deliver each job you take, do you? This is also true for a bailout effort. Your rescue plan will largely remain the same but your job site changes, and that means these points change too.

Location of Equipment

Rescue equipment (ladders, rescue poles, raising / lowering devices and rope) would be lodged elsewhere for you to count in a given job site anyways. For instance, you should note where your rescue equipment is located (nea Work Trailer A, left side) so you dont lose critical moments searching for the gear.

Obstructions/Hazards/Landing Area: No two construction sites will be equal also in terms of obstructions, hazards or the actual landing area. Your rescue plan should take that into account.

Failure to inspect equipment.

Not inspecting your equipment before using it on a job is like showing up with a plan not to come home alive. In addition to ensuring that your gear is properly inspected before each use, you MUST have your equipment inspected every 6 months on the job site by a Competent Person. Equipment inspection is not only good practice, however, it Is OSHA Law.

OSHA 1926.502(d)(21) Personal fall arrest systems shall be inspected prior to each use for wear, damage and other deterioration, and defective components shall be removed from service.

All equipment should be inspected. All full body harnesses, lanyards, self-retracting lifelines, horizontal lifelines for two applications and vertical lifelines are all available right here as is concrete floor mounted cement anchors(weights). If you are putting it into the job site, Revolution needs to inspect it. Inspect every piece of equipment before operation — it may seem tedious or wasteful at first, but this step will motorize the prevention of death and grave injury. So check with the manufacturer for the instructions to assess your product. Task 6: Maintenance Log — A maintenance log would record each inspection carried out for the particular product, what maintenance was carried out and what corrective actions were taken.