Working at height is one of the biggest causes of serious injury in UK construction, warehousing and manufacturing. This is why fall arrest systems and anchor points need more attention in discussions about fall protection. Businesses are too often treating fall protection equipment as an afterthought. It is bought in bulk from a catalogue with no consideration to the structure it will be installed to or the work being carried out underneath. It is a serious risk to both employees and the employer.
Anchor points are only as good as the surface they are attached to. Different installation requirements exist for steel structural anchors, roof anchors, and horizontal lifeline systems, and the substrate is equally as important as the hardware. If an anchor is rated for 10kN, it is useless if it has been mounted to a purlin that will not support that loading in a fall scenario. Any facilities manager defining fall protection should require a structural survey as part of the scope of work, considering the anchor manufacturer’s requirements and the building’s construction.
The method of work being completed determines usage of fixed anchor points, temporary anchors, and horizontal lifeline systems for workspace safety. For example, one fixed anchor point works for one person completing a task that is maintenance-related on a rooftop water chiller. However, for multiple people working on a roof, a gantry, or a vessel top, a horizontal lifeline system is required because they need to be able to remain attached to the system and move along the line without disconnecting from the system at each anchor point. The majority of incidents are avoidable and occur at disconnection points. This is why specifying a system where workers remain connected to the system for the task is simply best practice and not a sign of overly cautious thinking.
Regulation and Inspection
The Work at Height Regulations 2005 clearly outlines the responsibilities of employers under the statute regarding the equipment they provide to workers. This equipment must be designed for its intended function, maintained properly, and inspected at reasonable intervals. For example, fall arrest equipment, including harnesses, lanyards, and anchor connectors, must be inspected every six months by a designated “competent person”. This inspection must be documented, and the documentation must be available for review. Businesses routinely think that a visual check performed by the end user is sufficient for this requirement, but this is not true. Formal inspections check for things like deterioration of stitching, abrasion of webbing, evidence of corrosion on metal components, and any evidence or sign of a shock absorber being deployed. A lanyard is required to be considered unfit for use if a shock absorber has been deployed, regardless of whether the lanyard appears to be intact.
Fall protection systems are not purchased one piece at a time. Individual regulations such as the CE and UKCA for compliance may be present on a harness, anchor and lanyard but each of them comes from a different manufacturer, but there is no specific compliance for the system as a whole. Each component must be checked to see how they interact with each other and put together to understand if they are safe to wear. Falling into emptiness is frequently ignored on work platforms at lower levels where the anchor beam is mounted above. Without any space below the anchor, a worker can strike the ground, or even any lower structure, before an arrest lanyard fully deploys, causing it to be exposed.
Standardising on a single supplier and system will also improve the way your business operates at multiple sites or has a mobile workforce. This way you will have an easier time with training, finding spare parts, scheduling inspections, and you will eliminate the problems that arise when your workers switch from one incompatible harness to another, depending on the job.
Fall protection systems must begin with a task-based risk assessment and not with a catalog of products. This way, you will be able to find the right combination of anchors, connectors, and personal protection equipment to ensure that your employees are fully protected while working at height.