Fall Protection Forum

This blog was originally posted on 12/27/2013 and reviewed on 2/11/2021. Disclaimer: The staff of Rigid Lifelines are not medical experts. If a worker is experiencing suspension trauma, seek medical assistance immediately. Whenever workers need to use fall protection systems to work at height, it is CRUCIAL that a rescue plan…

All of the information in this blog is in reference to ANSI Z359.4-2007 “Safety Requirements for Assisted-Rescue and Self-Rescue Systems, Sub-Systems, and Components.”  The requirements for fall protection and fall arrest devices are a little different than rescue devices. Overall, this can be attributed to the tasks that the equipment…

During the quoting process, there are many different questions that need to be answered. In addition to finding out the general work area that needs to be covered with a fall protection system and what type of system will be best suited to meet the needs of the application, fall…

Fall protection systems are a wonderful protection method for people who work at height. But, those systems are only as good as their correct installation and use. When a fall protection system is installed and used correctly, a worker should be able to have their fall arrested with minimal consequences….

Although snow can be pretty, it can also be extremely dangerous when people are working at height. For this reason, people need to employ some of these concepts when they are about to access different work areas. There may be times when workers do not know the best practices for…

Many safety training sessions are like watching a cluster of snails move across a deck—it feels like there’s a lot of ground to cover and you’re not sure if everyone will make it to the end. And yet, making a safety training and information session can actually be a fun…

There are lots of exciting definitions in the world of fall protection, and it can be confusing to try and keep track of all of them (thankfully, this is why ANSI Z359.0 is in existence), but it’s important to know the different terms that are used for fall protection, especially…

In part one of this blog series, we discussed the fact that there are five different factors that can influence the way a fall protection harness fits a worker’s body. Those factors include: the number of adjustment points on a harness, the type of adjustment points on a harness, the…

When you’re shopping for something like oven mitts or beach towels, it’s generally safe to believe the tag that reads: “One Size Fits All.” But, when safety managers and other fall protection personnel are researching a full body harness for their employees, it’s critical to remember that “universal” sized harnesses…

Prior to the 1960s, cotton was the fabric of choice for all industrial products that needed textiles.  Although the fabric was cheap and plentiful, it did not hold up well in harsh environments. By the early 1960s, synthetic blends became available for American manufacturers. Once people experienced the rugged durability…

Full body harnesses have a very significant role in a fall protection system. Although every major part of a fall protection system is important, the full body harness is the part that is closest to the worker and literally connects the worker to the rest of the fall protection system….

Horizontal lifeline fall protection is an important system to have in any facility or situation where people must work at height.  But deciding which type of fall protection system is best for your particular application can be a difficult choice.  For this reason, it’s important to understand the advantages and…