Don’t take the fall

Fall protection varies based upon the type of work contractors perform. Make sure your customers are using the right tool for the job

by Paul Markgraff

You probably didn’t know Yuriy Vanchytskyy. His neighbors and friends described him as reliable, hard-working and cheerful, always ready to lend a hand. His co-workers at the Trump SoHo construction site in New York described him as respected and cheerful.

You maybe didn’t know this hard-working family man, but you probably know guys just like him.

On Jan. 15, 2008, Vanchytskyy died after he fell from the top floor of the 42-story Trump SoHo building after several steel beams came apart and the northeast corner of the building collapsed, according to eyewitnesses.

Another construction worker and Bronx resident, Jeff Kosta, told a local newspaper he was standing 15 feet away from where the floor collapsed. He said 10 of the 25 workers on top of the job site fell into the next two floors, resulting in some serious injuries.

Though fall protection may not have protected everyone from injury during this terrible incident, it reinforces that contractors should assure their fall protection plan and equipment are right for the job.

The right tool
Fall protection applications vary based upon the type of work being done. For example, different tools and applications are required for bridgework, commercial roofing, steel erection, concrete and leading edge work, and concrete wall forming and rebar work. Industry experts share some examples of the challenges posed by each type of work and how to protect yourself from injury.

Bridge work
Bridges present unique challenges for workers. There are no overhead anchor points, very few handholds and workers need horizontal mobility. Bob Cabrelli, national sales manager for Sperian Protection’s Miller fall protection line, says contractors typically use horizontal lifelines in these cases.

“The lifelines are strung between anchor points at 60 feet to 90 feet,” says Cabrelli. “Once you get past 100 feet, fall protection systems use stanchions every 30 feet. The horizontal lifeline runs through these stanchions, which are 35 inches to 48 inches high. This puts the lifeline at chest or shoulder height. Contractors can put three to five workers on a 300-foot span with no more than two workers between each span.”

These are temporary, portable systems and workers can easily attach and detach from them, he says. Because of the lifeline’s position, it also gives workers an extra handhold.

“Netting is also growing in popularity,” says Craig Firl, North American technical manager for Capital Safety. “Netting catches debris, and workers can use it as a fall arrest system.”

Commercial roofing
Commercial roofs present problems of their own. As with bridgework, there are no overhead anchor points, and contractors often must work close to the roof’s edge. The edges are sometimes sharp, creating a cutting hazard, and owners rarely want contractors to penetrate the weatherproofing to install permanent fall protection systems.

“You need to make sure the edge isn’t a cutting edge,” says Morgan Neff, construction and fall protection sales manager for MSA. “Usually, the types of rope used in a lifeline are a very small-diameter wire rope. There is potential to cut that.”

Positioning the lifeline correctly is the best way to protect it, he says. By preventing workers from approaching the edge through passive restraint, contractors minimize fall risks.

“The reality is you often have to access that edge,” says Neff. “Webbing is testing very well in these circumstances. With webbing there’s more stretch, so you get a little bit of run over that edge and you’re not applying the stress all on one area. With wire rope, it locks up very quickly because of its bending radius.”

If the owner will allow it, contractors should try to install a permanent fall protection system for commercial roofing applications. These are typically perimeter-type systems that offer fall protection for workers, as well as future HVAC, window washing and maintenance work.

“You can walk the perimeter of a roof and stay connected for that entire distance, going around corners and bypass intermediate points,” says Firl. “Systems today provide mobility without the need to disconnect and reconnect as you reach corners.”

Steel erection
In many cases, steel erection faces the same challenges as commercial roofing. At the top level, there are no overhead anchor points. Steel cuts fall protection devices as easily as roof edges. Plus, contractors require vertical and horizontal mobility, and workers must wear fall protection and up to 60 lbs. of tools for the entire day, which can be uncomfortable.

“Manufacturers are producing harnesses that allow workers to carry a variety of tool pouches that can be easily added or removed depending on the work being performed. This gives them the ability to eliminate weight and gives them vertical and horizontal mobility,” says Cabrelli. “It’s important for workers to use a double shock-pack if their only alternative is tying off at their feet. A typical single shock-absorbing lanyard will not reduce fall forces to less than the 1,800 lbs. that OSHA requires if the worker falls.”

In many cases, contractors also perform cutting and welding operations on structural steel, which presents challenges such as damage to the equipment from high heat and weld slag. Contractors need to look for equipment that will resist that damage. Capital Safety uses a Kevlar-Nomex blend of materials in its harness to resist high heat.

“It’s more resistant than a typical nylon harness would be,” says Firl. “Kevlar might be less resistant in terms of UV protection and not as comfortable to wear, but by blending Nomex with it, you get better characteristics in those areas.”

Concrete and leading edge
Leading edge hazards speak for themselves; as workers near the leading edge of any work surface, the safety risk soars. Concrete can also be abrasive and potentially damaging to fall protection equipment, so durability is a must.

Over the years, the common practice on leading edge work has been rat lines, which are either rope lines or retractables tied to a column some distance away from the edge. With four or five people working in one area, your fall protection system is suddenly creating substantial trip hazards. Contractors also need to make sure the lines aren’t scraping across rough concrete edges.

“You want to give a worker a mobile anchor point, and we always recommend an additional shock-absorbing pack at the end of the line when contractors work the leading edge,” says Cabrelli. “It’s also a good idea to pad the edge.”

Contractors usually connect at their feet when working the leading edge, which presents additional dangers. In leading edge work, workers usually tie back to an anchor point that is 10 feet or more from the leading edge.

“Specialized equipment will allow you to connect at foot-level, yet stay within the prescribed limits that OSHA has set in terms of arresting forces,” says Firl. “So you fall further, but at the end of the day, you can still maintain the limits of what OSHA describes as an arresting force.”

The edge divides these types of fall protection systems into two components, says Firl. The first component measures from the anchor point to the edge and the second measures from the edge to the falling person.

“You want to make sure you have energy-absorbing abilities on each end of the system,” he says. “The specialized leading edge fall protection systems incorporate that.”

Concrete wall forms and rebar
Perhaps the most unique form of fall protection takes place when constructing wall forms and tying rebar. Workers must stay in precarious positions on this type of job. They need to stand on rebar, hang off the structure and work where footing is difficult.

“Anchors are a bit of a difficulty here,” says Neff. “When workers start connecting to rebar and tying it off, it’s really critical to use something that will keep the fall force as low as possible. You need to make sure you have a unit designed for that type of situation.”

Comfort is also important to workers who need to hang off of rebar for six to eight hours a day, says Cabrelli. Back pads built into the fall protection harness can provide that comfort.

“Rebar chain assemblies use a large hook that goes around the rebar, and the worker can lean back in the harness and hang about 2 feet away from the work,” he says. “It keeps them close to the work and positions them in front of it, so they can work hands-free. That soft back pad can take a lot of pressure off of your back.”

At the same time, contractors need to add a redundant fall protection system that will protect the worker as he or she unhooks and repositions on the rebar.

“This is typically a self-retracting lifeline device or energy-absorbing lanyard that connects at your dorsal D-ring and attaches overhead,” says Firl. “If your hands or feet should slip or something happens with your waist-positioning system, you’ve got a backup fall arrest system to keep you from falling the distance.”

This article originally appeared in the September/October 2008 issue of Progressive Distributor. Copyright 2008.

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