In This Document. Fall Protection Fact Sheet. CareerSafe, LLC

Transcription

1 Fall Protection Fact Sheet MODULE DESCRIPTION This module provides information about the working conditions that require fall prevention and the options available to protect workers from falls. OBJECTIVES After completing this module, the participant will be able to: Understand the importance of preventing falls. Identify common causes of falls in the workplace. List the factors that affect the severity of injuries from a fall. Identify dangerous walking-working surfaces. Describe methods of fall prevention including guardrails, personal fall arrest systems, and safety nets. Recognize when fall protection is and is not required. In This Document Intro Fall Prevention Fall Protection Systems Body Harnesses Protection Required Fall Hazards Floor and Wall Openings Protection Not Required MODULE OUTLINE 1. Introduction to the Fall Protect and Prevention Module Sadly, fatalities caused by falls in the workplace are more frequent than you might think. According to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, falls accounted for a total of 827 workplace fatalities in Worse, the vast majority of these fatalities could have easily been prevented by adhering to OSHA s regulations on Walking/Working Surfaces. Throughout this module, you will gain the knowledge you need to prevent yourself and your fellow co-workers from becoming a statistic.factors that Dictate the Severity of a Fall 2. Fall Prevention The factors of a fall that can dictate the severity of a person s injuries include: - Landing surface Falling distance Landing position In most falls, your landing position is the most critical factor in determining the severity of your injuries. Unfortunately, you are rarely able to choose your landing position, so you should practice fall prevention in order to avoid these injuries. To begin learning about fall prevention strategies, let s start with OSHA s General Requirements for Walking/Working Surfaces. 3. Fall Prevention Housekeeping is the first category mentioned under the General Guidelines for Walking/Working surfaces and is extremely important to the safety of everyone in the workplace, no matter where you work.

2 Remember to pay special attention to small items that could be tripping hazards. Things such as loose boards, floor mats with a rumpled corner, small holes and cracks, electrical cords, and other small items are serious hazards that should be corrected or removed from the work area immediately. To adhere to OSHA standards: - Workplaces should be kept clean and free of clutter. - Floors should be kept clean and dry. - Mats, gratings, or raised platforms must be provided for in work areas where wet floors are unavoidable. - Aisles and passageways should be kept free of any objects that could obstruct the walkway and become a trip hazard. - The borders of permanently placed aisles and passageways should be cleanly marked. - Covers and/or guardrails must be installed over holes, ditches, pits, tanks, and other areas where there is a fall hazard. 4. Fall Protection Systems Examples of Fall Protection Systems include: Guardrail Systems Safety Net Systems Personal Fall Arrest Systems (PFAS) Under OSHA s General Requirements, a guardrail must be placed around any area where a fall of four feet or more is possible. The most common areas that need guardrails are platforms, stairways, scaffolding, open pits, tanks, and floor and wall openings. It is important that all guardrails adhere to the following standards: Guardrails should have a top rail, middle rail, and posts. The vertical height of the top rail should be 42 inches from the top surface to the walkway level. To prevent clothing snags and lacerations, the top rail should not extend beyond the edge of the posts. The mid rail should be approximately 21 inches in height from the surface of the floor, or half the distance from the floor to the top rail. Plastic and steel banding is not approved for top rails or mid rails, and should never be used. If screens or mesh are used in place of mid rails, they must extend the full height of the guardrail, from top rail to the floor level. The guardrail system must withstand a force of 200 pounds, or greater and when applied in any downward or outward direction. If an open pit cover is ever removed, a guardrail must be installed to protect workers. Toeboards are added to guardrail systems whenever there is a danger of materials and tools falling to the lower level and creating a hazard to those working below. OSHA requires that: Toeboards should be at least 4 inches in height Toeboards should be placed with no greater than ¼ inch clearance above the floor level to prevent objects from sliding underneath the gap.

3 Safety nets are a valuable tool that provides protection by catching an employee, should a fall occur. They must be provided when workplaces are more then 25 feet above the ground or water surface, or other surfaces where the use of ladders, scaffolds, catch platforms, temporary floors, or safety belts is impractical. Work should not begin until the net is in place and has been tested. Safety nets: Must be strong enough to support a falling employee. All new nets should meet the accepted performance standards of 17,500 foot-pounds minimum impact resistance. Must have sufficiently small mesh openings so the employee cannot fall through the net. Mesh openings should not exceed 6 x 6 inches. Shall extend 8 feet beyond the edge of the work surface where employees are exposed and shall be installed as close under the work surface as practical, but in no case more than 25 feet below such work surface. Nets shall be hung with sufficient clearance to prevent user contact with the surfaces or structures below. This will be determined by impact load testing. Must use forged steel safety hooks or shackles to fasten the net to its supports. Must have only one level of nets for net construction. A Personal Fall Arrest System (PFAS) is designed to catch a worker who falls from an upper level. The system is made up of several pieces, including a point of anchor to hold the worker to the structure, a lifeline, a connector, and a body harness. When used properly, this system greatly reduces the freefall distance of the worker, and is often used in areas where it is not possible to place guardrails to protect workers from fall hazards. Let s learn more about the individual parts of the Personal Fall Arrest System. A simple way to remember the parts of a Personal Fall Arrest System (PFAS) is through the ABC Anchor, Body Harness, and Connector. Click each image to learn more about OSHA s requirements. The anchor point is the point at which your lifeline is attached to a solid structure that is capable of supporting your weight when you fall. Federal law requires an anchor point that is structurally sound and good for a static force of 5000lbs. An example of this is permanent or reusable anchors that can be attached to roof decks or steel beams. Anchors should be designed, installed, and used under the supervision of a qualified person, as part of a complete PFAS. Anchors used to attach PFAS should be independent of any anchorage being used to support or suspend platforms. The connecting device connects the body harness to the anchor point. These are called shock absorbing lanyards, self retractable lifelines, or other similar variations. The body harness straps around your chest, buttocks, and thighs. The webbing is stretchable, providing for a more comfortable fit. In the event of a fall, you would be suspended upright and intact. Body harness systems must be set up to allow a worker to free fall no farther than 2 feet.

4 5. Fitting a Body Harness Hold onto the top shoulder straps or the D-ring on the back and check to ensure that no section of the harness is twisted or tangled. Grasp the shoulder straps and slip into the harness as if you were putting on a jacket. Check to ensure that each shoulder strap lays flat against the body, and that there are no twists in the material. Buckle chest strap by placing the male buckle through the female buckle. Once secure, adjust chest strap until it rests comfortably across the chest. If your harness has a belt attachment, buckle and adjust the belt. Inspect the harness to ensure that the belt has been passed through all belt loops provided. Now reach behind your left leg and grasp the leg strap. Bring the strap between the legs and buckle securely. Repeat this process with the right leg. Once both leg straps are buckled, re-check all straps to ensure they are fitted properly. The chest strap should rest approximately 6 inches below the top of the shoulder, and the D-ring on the back of the harness should rest between the shoulder blades. 6. When Fall Protection Is and Is Not Required There are certain circumstances when fall protection must be provided. These include: When an employee is on a walking/working surface that has an unprotected edge When an employee is constructing a leading edge When an employee may fall through a hole in the walking/working surface When an employee is working on the face of formwork or reinforcing steel When employees are on ramps, runways and other walkways When employees are working at the edge of an excavation, well, pit, or shaft When employees are working above dangerous equipment (even employees working less than six feet over dangerous equipment must be protected) When an employee is performing overhand bricklaying and related work When an employee is performing roofing work When an employee is engaging in pre-cast concrete erection (with certain exceptions) When an employee is engaged in residential construction (with certain exceptions) There are some areas where fall protection systems are not required, such as areas where overhead bricklaying and related work is taking place. These areas are called Controlled Access Zones, and are created to restrict entrance due to a lack of guardrails, personal arrest systems, and safety nets in the area. 7. Fall Hazards There are many areas in the workplace that present particularly dangerous fall hazards. Fall protection is needed when working on or with: Ramps, runways & walkways. Residential construction. Unprotected sides & edges. Sky lights and other openings. Holes.

5 Concrete forms & rebar. Excavations. Roofs. Ramps, runways, and other walkways must be protected by guardrail systems when employees can fall 6 feet or more. The walking/working surface must be strong enough to support employees safely. If not, employees may not work on the surface. Whether a walk/working surface is safe or not will be assessed during frequent and regular inspections made, as required, by competent persons designated by the employer. Residential Construction: In residential construction, you must be protected if you can fall more than 6 feet. Unprotected Sides & Edges: Unprotected sides and edges must have guardrails or equivalent hazard protection. Sky Lights and Other Openings: Covers for skylights and other openings must be: 1. Able to support at least twice the weight of employees, equipment, and materials that may be imposed on them at one time. 2. Secured to prevent accidental displacement from wind, equipment, or workers activities. 3. Color coded or be labeled Hole or Cover. Holes: Personal fall arrest systems, covers, or guardrail systems shall be used around holes (including skylights) that are more than 6 feet above lower levels. Concrete Forms and Rebar: Employees on a form scaffold can be exposed to falls of less than 10 feet. Excavations: Guard excavations more than 6 feet deep when they are not readily seen because of plant growth or other visual barriers. Roofs: If workers are working on roofs with unprotected sides and edges 6 feet or more above lower levels, they shall be protected from falling by guardrail systems, safety net systems, personal fall arrest systems or a combination of a warning line system and guard-rail system, warning line system and safety net system, warning line system and personal fall arrest system, or warning line system and safety monitoring system. 8. Floor and Wall Openings Floor and wall openings and holes, as well as platforms with multiple open sides, are potential falling hazards. Not only is it possible for an employee to fall through these openings onto a lower level, but there is also a risk for objects, such as tools and other equipment, to fall down to the work area below, causing worker injuries and destruction of equipment. Wall openings need to be guarded by either a guardrail system or safety net system. If neither of these are possible, workers should wear Personal Fall Arrest Systems at all times when working around the wall opening. You will notice that in this image the wall opening is guarded by a guardrail system and has the appropriate warning signs posted to alert workers of the hazard.

6 Requirements regarding floor openings and holes are as follows: You may use either covers or guardrails. If there will be workers below, you must install a toeboard to protect them from falling objects. While the cover is removed, a temporary guardrail must be in place or an attendant may stand at the opening to warn approaching employees of the fall hazard. 9. When Fall Protection is Not Required There are some areas where fall protection systems are not required, such as areas where overhead bricklaying and related work is taking place. These areas are called Controlled Access Zones, and are created to restrict entrance due to a lack of guardrails, personal fall arrest systems, and safety nets in the area. These zones must be marked by Control Lines, or a similar system, that will effectively restrict the accessibility to the area. Some specifications regarding Control Lines are: They consist of materials, such as tapes, ropes, and wires, and have supporting stanchions Are highly visible They are strong enough to withstand a minimum weight of 200 lbs They must extend the full length of, and be parallel to, the unprotected or leading edge They must always be connected to either a wall or guardrail system at each end, to both ensure stability and remove access to the dangerous area