In order for a roof parapet to provide adequate fall protection, a roof parapet railing should be at least 42" in height. Unfortunately, many buildings get close to this height without quite meeting the height required by OSHA to provide fall protection. There are several solutions to...

Back when I began in the field of safety, self-retracting lifelines (SRLs) were frowned upon by workers, not because the function wasn’t preferable, but because they were big, bulky, and very heavy.  Over time, things have changed.  Technology has improved.  And while the cumbersome...

Falling while working at height represents the number one cause of death in the construction industry and the number two cause in general industry.

Experience has shown us that people seem to be making the same fundamental mistakes while managing work at height.

The objective of this series...

Every time you or your team access a rooftop you should take every precaution and avoid hazards and dangerous situations. But sometimes we all need a reminder about what specifically to lookout for, so we’ve compiled this list of the top 10 hazards you should be aware of before you access a...

When considering fall protection solutions, people often consider Personal Fall Arrest Systems and rails as the only two options available. In some cases, that might be true, but in other cases it puts an undue burden on the person trying to come up with the solution by...

Safety Harnesses are meant to protect your life. But a safety harness that has been worn improperly can put you at risk in multiple ways. This article will equip you with some basic information so that you can ensure you are using your safety equipment effectively.

This is the second article...

Homeowners and building managers cannot be expected to be experts in every area of maintenance and repairs that need to be performed on their building.  Day in and day out, contractors around the country are hired to perform such work because they are the experts.  Some of this work takes...

Updated on December 20, 2018 by Josh Borowiec

Rooftop fall protection seems to be one of the most confusing regulations.

Given the amount of different scenarios, it's easy to miss an important detail – or at least misinterpret one. So, here’s a quick and easy by-the-numbers guide...

Whether it’s working from a boom lift, walking steel, standing on an elevated order picker, or any of the myriad other reasons you may be working at heights, “tying off” will do you no good if your personal fall arrest system allows you to strike the lower level before it stops your fall. ...

One of the most versatile pieces of fall protection equipment is the double tie off lanyard, also known as the Y-lanyard. This new breed of lanyard has become a popular choice among safety professionals in recent years. The Y-lanyard attaches two lanyard legs to a shock absorber and snap...

Safety has many enemies - budget, schedule, regulatory ignorance, and leadership indifference, to name a few – so maybe saying complacency is its worst enemy is a bit of hyperbole. Then again, maybe it’s not.

Each of the examples I mentioned is lacking one key...

We often talk about harnesses in a very general sense, as if there was only one brand and one type to choose from, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. While each of the safety harnesses you should be selecting should perform as well as the next, based on the fact that they should...

All workers wear fall protection in the hopes that it will never have to be used. However, should a fall occur, it is critical that the equipment function.

For this reason, fall protection equipment must be inspected before each use. Improper storage and care for fall...

Fall hazards are abundant and varied, making them difficult to protect against.  Every single situation is different and employers need to work with employees to ensure that the correct solution is in place.  The solutions may be easy or they may be complex, but either way, as the narrator...

As with most professions, Safety professionals often come into the field in positions where their responsibility is to focus on the day-to-day tasks of a jobsite or facility.  The “big picture” is left to somebody else, whether it’s the Corporate Safety Director or some other member of a...

One of the most neglected aspects of Fall Protection is the rescue and retrieval plan.  Sure, you've selected your harnesses and lanyards, debated the feasibility of railings, and calculated your fall distance, but what do you intend to do once the worker has fallen?  While the worker is...

Way back in August of 2012, a new ANSI standard was released that addressed the use of retractable lifelines for personal fall arrest and in rescue situations. These self-retracting lifelines had been in use for quite some time and, as they had gotten smaller, lighter, and more inexpensive,...

If you’re a safety professional, it’s been ingrained in you since you were in diapers sitting through your first OSHA 30 hr. How many times have you caught yourself in a conference room shouting, “But don’t you understand?? PPE is a last resort!”?  Countless, I’d imagine, but the problem...

There are three major areas of concern for ADA compliance. Once you have established that your facility needs to be ADA compliant, the three areas of concern are stairs, ramps, and landings/raised walkways.

Fall arrest is the kind of fall protection which includes the safe stopping of a person already falling. It is one of many forms of fall protection, which also include fall guarding and fall

OSHA specifies under Title 29 of the Code of Federal Regulations that people...