ABCD’s of Fall Protection

Personal fall arrest systems, or PFAS, include anchorage, body support or body wear, and a connecting device like a self-retracting lifeline or shock-absorbing lanyard. These vital components make up the core of the ABCD’s of fall protection.  Workers at height heavily rely on these essential components and their proper use to provide for their safety and protection. Considering that nearly 400 construction fatalities recorded in 2022 involved falls from height, personal fall arrest systems cannot be overlooked.

When discussing fall protection, anchorage connectors, and full-body harnesses receive a lot of attention. We don’t always stop to think about connecting devices like self-retracting lifelines or shock-absorbing lanyards, and yet these are the two components that bear the greatest forces during a fall. Additionally, descent and rescue devices are just as fundamental to fall protection.

Understanding Fall Protection ABCD’s

According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), workers at risk of falling from an elevated position require a personal fall arrest system. Fall protection is also necessary anytime workers in general industry reach a height of four or more feet, and when construction workers reach six or more feet. To determine your working height, measure the distance from the walking or working surface to the ground below.

As we discussed above, OSHA mandates the use of a full-body harness with a shock-absorbing lanyard or retractable lifeline as part of the complete PFAS. A full-body harness, for instance, distributes the forces throughout the body, and a shock-absorbing lanyard decreases the total fall-arresting forces.

Anchorage

An anchorage is also known as a rigid track system, rebar, scaffolding, or I-beam. It is a secure point of attachment for your lifeline or lanyard that is independent of the worker’s means of support or suspension. An anchorage connector, on the other hand, is the component used to join the connecting device — a self-retracting lifeline or shock-absorbing lanyard — to the anchorage. Anchorages must be placed high enough to prevent worker contact with the ground or lower level if a fall occurs, and they should be able to support 5,000 pounds of force per user or maintain a safety factor of at least two, under the supervision of a qualified person. Anchorage connectors must be positioned so that workers won’t endure a swing fall in the event of a fall from height.

Body Wear

Body wear is the personal protective equipment (PPE) workers wear at height. A full-body harness is the only acceptable body support for fall arrest applications. That’s because a full-body harness distributes fall arrest forces across the thighs, pelvis, and shoulders. They also have a center-back fall arrest attachment to connect to the fall arrest connecting device and may even include additional D-rings.

Full-body harnesses must meet the requirements of ANSI/ASSE Z359.1 for fall arrest applications. This means that any work positioning or travel restraint attachments — D-rings — must withstand a dynamic strength test of a 3.3-foot free fall using a 220-pound test weight. Additionally, the dorsal or back D-ring must be suitable for rescue applications unless otherwise prohibited by the manufacturer. Other rescue attachments must meet the 3,600-pound static load test criteria, along with the dynamic test criteria of a two-foot free-fall distance, also using a 220-pound test weight.

Connecting Devices

Connecting devices are a crucial component of a complete PFAS. The connecting subsystem is the critical link that joins the full-body harness, or body wear, to the anchorage connector. Connecting devices can consist of the following:

• Energy-absorbing lanyards
• Self-retracting lifelines
• Rope grabs or retrieval systems

How the connection is made depends on whether the worker is equipped for personal fall arrest or work positioning. For the sake of this discussion, we are only focusing on personal fall arrest components.

The connecting device for a PFAS is usually either an energy-absorbing lanyard or a self-retracting lifeline. A lanyard is defined as a flexible line that secures the harness to a rigid track system. There are different types of lanyards, including energy-absorbing lanyards that reduce the impact on the user’s body, and shock-absorbing lanyards.

This reduces forces on the worker below the injury threshold, as recommended by OSHA and ANSI. OSHA mandates that all lanyards include self-locking, double-action, and self-closing snap hooks, thus lowering the chances of roll-out. Shock absorber packs can also be built into lanyards to provide shock-absorbing features. The inner core of a shock-absorbing pack expands smoothly to reduce forces during a fall.

Self-retracting lifelines (SRLs) are another viable option for connecting devices, depending on your application and fall protection needs. There are great benefits to using SRLs:

• SRLs reduce the free-fall distance and energy loads from a fall.
• SRLs also enable greater horizontal and vertical mobility than standard six-foot shock-absorbing lanyards.
• They need shorter activation and arresting distances, which lowers the chances of workers impacting the ground.
• While standard shock-absorbing lanyards give workers a leeway of up to six feet of free-fall distance before they activate, some self-retracting lifelines need less than two feet to arrest free falls.

According to OSHA 1926.502(d), vertical lifelines must be designed with a minimum breaking strength of 5,000 pounds. Similarly, self-retracting lifelines and lanyards that do not restrict free fall to two or fewer feet must be able to sustain a minimum tensile load of 5,000 pounds when fully extended.  However, self-retracting lifelines that automatically restrict free-fall distance to two feet or less must only be able to sustain a minimum tensile load of 3,000 pounds when fully extended.

Connecting devices offer many options, and they should be considered based on the application at hand and the working environment. It’s always smart to use a lanyard or lifeline attached to an anchorage point that is positioned directly overhead to protect workers from swing falls. Although all three components of a PFAS are subjected to the total fall force, connecting devices are comprised of only one strength member (webbing, rope, and steel cable.). Choosing a high-quality connecting device is essential, as is checking it daily for excessive exposure to UV light, chemicals, physical damage, and/or improper storage. Inadequate inspection can easily lead to device failure.

Keep the following in mind when selecting the right type of connecting device for your specific personal fall arrest needs:

• Application and environmental conditions: This includes dirt, oil, moisture, grease, acids, hazards and obstructions, and ambient temperature.
• Potential fall distance: Your potential fall distance is usually greater than anticipated. It’s important to look at your connecting device’s length, along with the length of elongation during deceleration, worker height, and an added safety factor.
• System component compatibility: It’s crucial to design and test your PFAS as a whole system because components from multiple manufacturers may be incompatible. Incompatible or non-interchangeable components can easily cause roll-out.
• Product quality and regulations: Don’t skimp on your PFAS components. The better the quality, the safer the worker. Furthermore, although the regulations set by OSHA are legally compulsory, ANSI recommendations are suggestive and self-enforced. Even so, ANSI standards should not be taken for granted. Use ANSI standards alongside OSHA regulations as part of a stated performance indicator. ANSI standards are written to save lives and prevent worker injury and should not be taken lightly.

Descent, Rescue, and Retrieval

Anchors, body support, and connecting devices make work conditions safer, but a fourth element completes the ABCD of fall protection — descent, rescue, and retrieval if a worker has fallen.

Descent and rescue devices are used to raise or lower a fallen worker to safely retrieve them. Having quality ascenders and descenders is vital for a successful retrieval, it is also imperative to have an effective rescue plan in place. The core of a retrieval plan is acting quickly, acting accordingly, and putting the fewest workers at risk.

Rescues and retrievals typically follow these three basic outlines:

• Self-rescue: The worker is able to pull themselves up or climb to safety unassisted. In this process, the worker climbs back to the level from which they fell before returning to the floor or ground. The worker is then assessed to see if medical attention is necessary. The worker will remove all components from their arrest system and bag and tag the components with their name, the date, and the project or activity at the time of the fall.
• Assisted self-rescue: The fallen worker descends with the aid of a hauling system, rope system, or ladder. The haul line is lowered to the worker so that they can secure the lifeline hook to their body support D-ring. Once a positive connection is verified by one of the rescue team members, the team begins raising or lowering the fallen worker to a safer platform or the ground. Once again, the fall arrest components are bagged and tagged.
• Mechanically-assisted rescue: When workers are unable to attach themselves to a rescue system, a fully assisted, mechanically aided rescue becomes necessary. This method generally involves using an aerial lift. A rescue worker will get into the aerial lift with a second lanyard or self-retracting lifeline to attach to the worker being rescued. Once attached to the self-retracting lifeline and disconnected from the impacted fall arrest equipment, the worker is lowered to the ground to receive medical attention. Once again, a protocol for bagging and tagging is followed.

Get Fall Protection Systems From Rigid Lifelines^®

A solid understanding of the ABCD’s of fall protection and fall protection systems is crucial for ensuring a greater level of worker safety. At Rigid Lifelines, we manufacture permanent and mobile fall protection systems, and fall arrest accessories such as Cable Self-Retracting Lanyards, Cable Hybrid Self-Retracting Lanyards, and Full-Body Harnesses.

We distribute products across the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Latin America. Using our System Selector, you can explore fall protection systems that best suit your projects, or you can contact a local Rigid Lifelines representative today to schedule an on-site assessment.