Fall Arrest & Fall Restraint Systems It is important for you to understand the difference between a fall arrest system and fall restraint system. These are most commonly used in the construction industry but may apply to many other situations where employees must work at heights. FALL RESTRAINT: A fall restraint system consists of the equipment used to keep an employee from reaching a fall point, such as the edge of a roof or the edge of an elevated working surface. The most commonly utilized fall restraint system is a standard guardrail. A tie-off system that "restrains" the employee from falling off...

Residential Roofing -- "To Be Or Not To Be" - Tied Off? OSHA's "Subpart M" intended to standardize fall protection for the construction industry, but did not clearly define how those standards would apply to residential construction. At the request of industry associations, OSHA reconsidered the code and published an interim policy in December of 1995 which is considered to comply with Subpart M during residential roofing work where (1) the roof slope is 8-in-12 or less and (2) fall potential from lower eaves is 25 feet or less. Check with applicable state programs for inclusion of this optional federal change. If...

Personal Fall Arrest and Fall Restraint Systems It is important for you to understand the difference between a fall arrest system and fall restraint system. These are most commonly used in the construction industry, but may apply to many other situations where employees must work at heights. FALL RESTRAINT: A fall restraint system consists of the equipment used to keep an employee from reaching a fall point, such as the edge of a roof or the edge of an elevated working surface. The most commonly utilized fall restraint system is a standard guardrail. A tie off system that "restrains" the employee from...

Excavations Are Serious Business Excavations and trenches need not be deep or large to create a life threatening hazard. Soil is heavy, and failures take place with little or no notice. You can be trapped before there is time to react. So it is important that every excavation be prepared correctly, allowing you to complete your job safely and efficiently. Remember that every trench is different. Soil type, moisture content, depth, configuration, proximity to existing structures, and location of spoil piles all work together to make every excavation unique. Keep these points in mind when working: Follow the recommendations of your...

Don't Gamble With Personal Fall Arrest Equipment  Unsafe fall arrest equipment contributed to the fatal 150-foot fall of an Oregon construction worker recently. Burn holes in the worker's fall arrest straps and a faulty self-retracting lanyard were blamed for the failure. These could have been discovered if adequate equipment inspections had been conducted. Would you gamble with your life? A lot of people do just that when they fail to inspect their personal fall arrest equipment daily. They gamble that the equipment will save their life if they fall. Wearing fall arrest equipment without inspecting it, provides a false sense of security. This...

Floors and Other Openings Injuries in the workplace because of holes in walking and working surfaces are commonplace. Slips, trips and even falls from one level to the next can be as painful as a fall from a roof. The following items should be considered when dealing with floors and other types of openings. Guide for Discussion Hazard Identification: Floor Openings (2”x2” minimum at any depth) Temporary openings Plumbing Ventilation (Vault Ceilings?) Skylight wells Manholes Holes in Ground (Trenches and Excavations) Wall/Window Openings Temporary guardrail system Washington Fall Protection Standards Methods of Protection Use of standard guardrails Use of covers Able to...

Falls Wily Coyote always seems to fall into a deep canyon and not be injured at all. People can’t. Then why do we seem to have trouble getting workers to pay attention to the fall hazards around them? Guide for Discussion The following items represent the bulk of the exposure to falls on a construction site. Ladders: Always use the right ladder. Set them on level ground and tie them off at the top (for security). Do not over reach. Do not over extend yourself on the ladder. Always face the ladder and try to use both hands when climbing. Floor Openings: Floor openings should...

Trenching As far as safety is concerned, trenching and excavation operations are very similar. Both expose workers to the same types of hazards. Therefore, many of the same basic safety rules apply. The main difference is that a trench allows for only restricted working space. This restriction increases the potential for injury. As just one result, the need for safety awareness is increased when compared to excavation operations. Guide for Discussion Pre-operations: Locate all underground utilities. Determine, if possible, soil conditions. Determine if there is an overhead exposure. Based on the depth of the trench, determine the amount of shoring needed or angle...

Full Body Harnesses/Lifelines Discussion Points Full Body Harnesses, a connector (for example, a self-retracting lanyard), lifelines and anchors are all part of a Personal Fall Arrest System (or PFAS). The days of having a safety belt and lanyard are over – just too many injuries and deaths to workers. PFAS is generally required when working at ten (10) feet in the workplace. That is an OSHA requirement. Insert company policy. Falls account for over a quarter of all construction injuries. It seems that some workers don’t want to take the time to put their PFAS on, or worse, feel they don’t need...

Job Site Hazards – The Big Four Instructor Notes: In some Federal Occupational Safety and Health  states, compliance officers are evaluating a program whereas they will inspect four basic job site hazards on residential construction projects. If these four areas are found to be satisfactory, the compliance officer has the option to end the inspection at that point and leave the job site. Residential construction safety professionals often use the four basic job site hazard subject areas as a means to get interest from the on-the-job employees; it works out very well as a training or instructional guide. The big four are: Falls From Elevated...