Fall Protection Plan

Policy 303.11

Introduction

In the construction and maintenance industry in the U.S., falls are the leading cause of worker fatalities. ASU recognizes that accidents involving falls are generally complex events frequently involving a variety of factors. Consequently the standard for fall protection deals with both the human and equipment-related issues in protecting workers from fall hazards. For example, the University and the employees need to do the following:

Where protection is required, select fall protection systems appropriate for given situations.

• Use proper construction, maintenance, and installation of safety systems.

• Supervise employees properly.

• Use safe work procedures.

• Train workers in the proper selection, use, and maintenance of all protection systems.

Scope

OSHA has revised its construction and maintenance industry safety standards (29 Code of Federal Regulations, Subpart M, Fall Protection, 1926.500, 1926.501, 1926.502, 1926.503 and general industry standard 1910 applicable to 1926 standard) and developed systems and procedures designed to prevent employees from falling off, onto, or through working levels and to protect employees from being struck by falling objects. The performance-oriented requirements make it easier for ASU to provide the necessary protection.

The rule covers most construction and maintenance workers except those inspecting, investigating, or assessing workplace conditions prior to the actual start of work or after all work has been completed.

The rule identifies areas or activities where fall protection is needed. These include, but are not limited to elevated walkways; leading edge work; unprotected sides and edges; elevated platforms; and related work; roofing work; and other elevated walking/working surfaces. The rule sets a uniform threshold height of 4 feet, thereby providing consistent protection. This means that construction and maintenance employers must protect their employees from fall hazards and falling objects whenever an affected employee is 4 feet or more above a lower level. Protection must also be provided for construction and maintenance workers who are exposed to the hazard of falling into dangerous equipment.

Under the new standard, supervisors will be able to select fall protection measures compatible with the type of work being performed. Fall protection generally can be provided through the use of personal fall arrest systems, positioning device systems, and warning line systems, among others.

The OSHA rule clarifies what an employer must do to provide fall protection for employees, such as identifying and evaluating fall hazards and providing specific training. Appalachian State University (ASU) is required to provide fall protection for workers on scaffolds, elevated platforms, and fixed ladders used for all construction and maintenance and repair of buildings and equipment as noted in general industry standard 1910.

Definitions

Definition phrase or word

Definition summary

Policy and Procedure Statements

PROVISIONS OF THE STANDARD

These standards prescribes the duty to provide fall protection, sets the criteria and practices for fall protection systems, and requires training. It covers hazard assessment and pre-planning for fall protection and safety monitoring systems. Also addressed are controlled access zones, personal fall arrest systems, warning lines, positioning device systems, and 5,000 lb. Anchor point per employee attached.

DUTY TO HAVE FALL PROTECTION

Supervisors are required to assess the workplace to determine if the elevated walking/working surfaces on which employees are to work have the strength and structural integrity to safely support workers. Employees are not permitted to work on those surfaces until it has been determined that the surfaces have the requisite strength and structural integrity to support the workers. Once supervisors have determined that the surface is safe for employees to work on, the supervisor must select one of the options listed for the work operation if a fall hazard is present.

For example, if an employee is exposed to falling 4 feet or more from an unprotected side or edge, the supervisor must select a personal fall arrest system to protect the worker. Similar requirements are prescribed for other fall hazards as follows.

Controlled Access Zones

A Controlled access zone is a work area designated and clearly marked in which certain types of work (such as roof repair or equipment maintenance) may take place without the use of conventional fall protection systems-- personal fall arrest system or positioning device system--to protect the employees working in the zone.

Controlled access zones, when created to limit entrance to areas where leading edge work and other operations are taking place, must be defined by a control line or by any other means that restrict access. Control lines shall consist of ropes, wires, tapes or equivalent materials, and supporting stanchions, and each must be:

Flagged or otherwise clearly marked at not more than 6-foot intervals with high-visibility material;

Rigged and supported in such a way that the lowest point (including sag) is not less than 39 inches (1 meter) from the walking/working surface and the highest point is not more than 45 inches--nor more than 50 inches when maintenance and repair operations are being performed--from the walking/working surface;

Control lines also must be connected on each side to the building structure.

When control lines are used, they shall be erected not less than 6 feet (1.8 meters) nor more than 25 feet from the unprotected leading edge.

Controlled access zones when used to determine access to areas where maintenance and repair or related work are taking place are to be defined by a control line erected not less than 10 feet (3 meters) nor more than 15 feet (4.6 meters) from the working edge. Additional control lines must be erected at each end to enclose the controlled access zone. Only employees engaged in roof repair and general maintenance/repair or related work are permitted in the controlled access zones.

Excavations

Each employee at the edge of an excavation 4 feet or more deep shall be protected from falling by fences, barricades, or covers. Where walkways are provided to permit employees to cross over excavations, guardrails are required on the walkway if it is 6 feet or more above the excavation.

Hoist Areas

Each employee in a hoist area shall be protected from falling 4 feet or more by a personal fall arrest system, warning line or a combination of both.

Holes

Personal fall arrest systems, warning lines or a combination of both shall be used around holes (including skylights) that are more than 4 feet above lower levels to protect employees from tripping in or stepping into or through holes and provide protection from objects falling through holes, such as skylights.

Leading Edges

Each employee on a walking/working surface 4 feet or more above a lower level where leading edges are either completed or under construction, but who is not engaged in the leading edge work, shall be protected from falling by a personal fall arrest system. A controlled access zone must be established for leading edge work; the control line may be used in lieu of a guardrail along the edge that parallels the leading edge.

Roofing

Low-slope Roofs

Each employee engaged in roofing activities on low-slope roofs with unprotected sides and edges 4 feet or more above lower levels shall be protected from falling by personal fall arrest systems or a combination of a warning line system and personal fall arrest system, or warning line system and safety monitoring system. On roofs 50 feet (15.24 meters) or less in width, the use of a safety monitoring system without a warning line system is permitted.

Steep Roofs

Each employee on a steep roof with unprotected sides and edges 4 feet or more above lower levels shall be protected from falling by a personal fall arrest system.

Dangerous Equipment

Each employee less than 4 feet above dangerous equipment shall be protected from falling into or onto the dangerous equipment by a personal fall arrest system or by equipment guards. Each employee 4 feet or more above dangerous equipment shall be protected from fall hazards by a personal fall arrest system.

Personal Fall Arrest Systems

These consist of an anchorage, connectors, and a body harness and may include a lanyard, deceleration device, lifeline, or suitable combinations. Effective January 1, 1998, body belts are not acceptable as part of a personal fall arrest system. If a personal fall arrest system is used for fall protection, it must do the following: (This is from the OSHA Standard)

Limit maximum arresting force on an employee to 1,800 pounds (8 kilonewtons) when used with a body harness;

Be rigged so that an employee can neither free fall more than 6 feet nor contact any lower level;

Bring an employee to a complete stop and limit maximum deceleration distance an employee travels to 3.5 feet (1.07 meters); and

Have sufficient strength to withstand twice the potential impact energy of an employee free falling a distance of 6 feet or the free fall distance permitted by the system, whichever is less.

Personal fall arrest systems must be inspected prior to each use for wear, damage, and other deterioration. Defective components must be removed from service. Dee-rings and snaphooks must have a minimum tensile strength of 5,000 pounds (22.2 kilonewtons). Dee-rings and snaphooks shall be proof-tested to a minimum tensile load of 3,600 pounds (16 kilonewtons) without cracking, breaking, or suffering permanent deformation.

Snaphooks shall be sized to be compatible with the member to which they will be connected, or shall be of a locking configuration.

The snaphook must be a locking type and designed for the following connections, (a) directly to webbing, rope or wire rope; (b) to each other; (c) to a dee-ring to which another snaphook or other connecter is attached; (d) to a horizontal lifeline; or (e) to any object incompatible in shape or dimension relative to the snaphook, thereby causing the connected object to depress the snaphook keeper and release unintentionally.

Snap hooks are compatible when the diameter of the dee-ring to which the snaphook is attached is greater than the inside length of the snaphook when measured from the bottom (hinged end) of the snaphook keeper to the inside curve of the top of the snaphook. Thus, no matter how the dee-ring is positioned or moved (rolls) with the snaphook attached, the dee-ring cannot touch the outside of the keeper, thus depressing it open.

On fixed or rolling scaffolds or similar work platforms with horizontal lifelines that may become vertical lifelines, the devices used to connect to a horizontal lifeline shall be capable of locking in both directions on the lifeline.

Horizontal lifelines shall be designed, installed, and used under the supervision of a supervisor, as part of a complete personal fall arrest system that maintains a safety factor of at least two, i.e., capable of supporting at least twice the weight expected to be imposed on it. Lifelines shall be protected against being cut or abraded.

Self-retracting lifelines and lanyards that automatically limit free fall distance to 2 feet or less shall be capable of sustaining a minimum tensile load of 3,000 pounds applied to the device with the lifeline or lanyard in the fully extended position.

Self-retracting lifelines and lanyards that do not limit free fall distance to 2 feet or less, ripstitch lanyards, and tearing and deforming lanyards shall be capable of sustaining a minimum tensile load of 5,000 pounds applied to the device with the lifeline or lanyard in the fully extended position.

Ropes and straps (webbing) used in lanyards, lifelines, and strength components of body harnesses shall be made of synthetic fibers.

Anchorages shall be designed, installed, and used under the supervision of a supervisor, as part of a complete personal fall arrest system that maintains a safety factor of at least two, i.e., capable of supporting at least twice the weight expected to be imposed upon it. Anchorages used to attach personal fall arrest systems shall be independent of any anchorage being used to support or suspend platforms and must be capable of supporting at least 5,000 pounds per person attached.

The attachment point of the body harness shall be located in the center of the wearer's back near shoulder level, or above the wearer's head.

Lanyards and vertical lifelines must have a minimum breaking strength of 5,000 pounds. When vertical lifelines are used, each employee shall be attached to a separate lifeline.

Body harnesses, and components shall be used only for employee protection (as part of a positioning device system) and not to hoist materials.

The employer shall provide for prompt rescue of employees in the event of a fall or shall assure that employees are able to rescue themselves.

Positioning Device Systems

Body harness systems are to be set up so that a worker can free fall no farther than 2 feet. They shall be secured to an anchorage capable of supporting at least twice the potential impact load of an employee's fall or 3,000 pounds, whichever is greater. Requirements for snaphooks, dee-rings, and other connectors used with positioning device systems must meet the same criteria as those for personal fall arrest systems.

Safety Monitoring Systems

When no other alternative fall protection safeguard has been implemented for low slope roofs, the supervisor shall implement a safety monitoring system. Per OSHA Standards, safety monitoring systems are to be used on low-slope roofs only. Supervisors must appoint a competent person to monitor the safety of workers and the employer shall ensure that the safety monitor has been trained in the proper use of the safety monitoring system and complies with the following:

Is competent in the recognition of fall hazards;

Is capable of warning workers of fall hazard dangers and in detecting unsafe work practices;

Is operating on the same walking/working surface as the employees and within visual sight distance;

Is close enough to work operations to communicate orally with workers and has no other duties to distract from the monitoring function.

Mechanical equipment shall not be used or stored in areas where safety monitoring systems are being used to monitor employees engaged in roofing operations on low-sloped roofs.

No worker, other than one engaged in roofing work (on low-sloped roofs) or one covered by a fall protection plan, shall be allowed in an area where an employee is being protected by a safety monitoring system.

All workers in a controlled access zone shall be instructed to promptly comply with fall hazard warnings issued by safety monitors.

Warning Line Systems

Warning line systems consist of ropes, wires, or chains, and supporting stanchions and are set up as follows:

Flagged at not more than 6-foot intervals with high-visibility material;

Rigged and supported so that the lowest point (including sag) is no less than 34 inches from the walking/working surface and its highest point is no more than 39 inches from the walking/working surface.

Stanchions, after being rigged with warning lines, shall be capable of resisting, without tipping over, a force of at least 16 pounds applied horizontally against the stanchion, 30 inches (0.8 meters) above the walking/working surface, perpendicular to the warning line and in the direction of the floor, roof, or platform edge;

The rope, wire, or chain shall have a minimum tensile strength of 500 pounds and after being attached to the stanchions, must support without breaking, the load applied to the stanchions as prescribed above.

Shall be attached to each stanchion in such a way that pulling on one section of the line between stanchions will not result in slack being taken up in the adjacent section before the stanchion tips over.

Warning lines shall be erected around all sides of roof work areas. When mechanical equipment is being used, the warning line shall be erected not less than 6 feet from the roof edge parallel to the direction of mechanical equipment operation, and not less than 10 feet from the roof edge perpendicular to the direction of mechanical equipment operation.

When mechanical equipment is not being used, the warning line must be erected not less than 6 feet from the roof edge.

Points of access, materials handling areas, storage areas, and hoisting areas shall be connected to the work area by an access path formed by two warning lines.

When the path to a point of access is not in use, a rope, wire, chain, or other barricade, equivalent in strength and height to the warning line, shall be placed across the path at the point where the path intersects the warning line erected around the work area, or the path shall be offset such that a person cannot walk directly into the work area.

No employee shall be allowed in the area between a roof edge and a warning line unless the employee is performing roofing work in that area.

Mechanical equipment on roofs shall be used or stored only in areas where employees are protected by a warning line system, or personal fall arrest system.

During roofing work, materials and equipment shall not be stored within 6 feet of a roof edge, and materials piled, grouped, or stacked near a roof edge must be stable and self-supporting.

TRAINING

The Physical Plant will provide a training program that teaches employees who might be exposed to fall hazards how to recognize such hazards and how to minimize them. Employees must be trained in the following areas: (a) the nature of fall hazards in the work area; (b) the correct procedures for erecting, maintaining, disassembling, and inspecting fall protection systems; (c) the use and operation of controlled access zones, personal fall arrest, warning line, safety monitoring systems, controlled access zones; and other protection to be used; (d) the role of each employee in the safety monitoring system when the system is in use; (e) the limitations on the use of mechanical equipment during the performance of roofing work on low-sloped roofs; (f) the correct procedures for equipment and materials handling and storage and the erection of overhead protection; (g) employees' role in fall protection plans; and (h) overview of the standard's requirements.

The Physical Plant will prepare a written certification that identifies the employee trained and the date of the training. The employer or trainer must sign the certification record. Retraining also must be provided when necessary. Circumstances where retraining of employees is required include, but is not limited to, situations where: (1) Changes in the workplace render previous training obsolete; or (2) Changes in the types of fall protection systems or equipment to be used render previous training obsolete; or (3) Inadequacies in an affected employees' knowledge or use of fall protection systems or equipment indicate that the employee has not retained the requisite understanding or skill. A record of the completed training program will be maintained in the Physical Plant and a copy forwarded to the Safety and Workers' Compensation Office.