Fall Protection Forum

As with all feats of engineering, there are always a variety of different things that need to be considered during the design process. Our engineers use a variety of calculations to ensure that the desired system is best suited to the weather patterns of the installation location. One of the…

As the number of workplace falls increase for industrial and construction facilities, more and more employers are beginning to install fall protection systems. It’s wonderful that employers are taking the time to consider the safety of their employees, but it is important for everyone to consider all elements of the…

Working at height has a special set of challenges associated with it. To complicate a dangerous situation further, when workers need to perform tasks at height during winter weather, there are even more opportunities for danger. If workers are tying off to a cable system such as a flexible horizontal…

Gravity is an acceleration force that draws two masses together. Because this gravitational acceleration is such an influential force, it is only logical that there are certain circumstances that either increase or decrease the amount of acceleration or “G-forces” imposed upon a human. Many physicists have devoted (and sometimes risked)…

The requirements for a self-rescue descent device are outlined in ANSI Z359.4-2007, section 3.2.7. This section covers all of the information about how to make sure that your descent device is compliant with ANSI requirements. Section 3.2.7 covers five different topics about fall protection that include: descent energy and capacity,…

Energy is something that can be neither created, nor destroyed. Since the energy cannot be created or destroyed, it can only move from one form to another form. Kinetic energy is one of the nine different forms of energy. It is the energy that is created from movement. Another form…

Writing a fall rescue plan can be a scary task for some employers. But fear not! These plans are easy to make thanks to this blog and the ASSE Fall Protection Code. For reference purposes, the fall hazard survey report requirements can be found in section 4.2 in ANSI/ASSE Z359.2-2007…

It seems to be part of the human condition that people will simply avoid dealing with a problem until they are forced (typically by external factors) to deal with it. When it comes to dealing with the safety of an employee in a potentially hazardous working environment, it is concerning…

Manufacturing and machine maintaining are tasks that require a lot of space. This is simply the nature of the beast. When a company makes a big machine or they fix big machines, they’re going to need a workspace that can handle the equipment. Working with large equipment usually means that…

The SRL and EAL debate is probably one of the hottest topics among fall protection engineers. It’s usually a lively debate because both devices have their benefits for a majority of fall protection situations. The two primary fields that require fall protection systems are industrial and construction settings. Each setting…

The Initial Evaluation There are many different things that a qualified person needs to consider when they are developing fall rescue plans. During the initial evaluation of the potential rescue team, a qualified person needs to establish that a local rescue service can meet the needs of that specific worksite….

When OSHA writes a law, they usually need to use the verbose and flowery terminology of governmental law. However, there are many times when I will experience a law or some other political statement that I feel can be easily summarized in far fewer words. Even though OSHA 1926.502 (d)(20)…