Write a toolbox talk on falls from drill rigs

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# Crane- and derrick-suspended personnel platforms (cont.) ## Anchorage strength is critical, but is not the only factor to consider. (cont.) The full-body harness. The full-body harness has straps that distribute the fall arrest forces over the thighs, waist, chest, shoulders, and pelvis. Full-body harnesses come in different styles, many of which are light and comfortable. Before you purchase harnesses, make sure that they fit those who will use them, they're comfortable, and they are easy to adjust. A full-body harness should include a back D-ring for attaching lifelines or lanyards and a back pad for support. Never use a body belt as part of a personal fall-arrest system. Keep the following in mind when you buy a full-body harness: • The harness must be made from synthetic fibers. ●It must be appropriate for the user's body size and weight (including tools worn) - It must have an attachment point, usually a D-ring, in the center of the back at about shoulder level. • Use only industrial full-body harnesses (not recreational climbing harnesses). ●It should meet ANSI and CSA standards and the manufacturer should have ISO 9001 certification, which shows the manufacturer meets international standards for product design, development, production, installation, and service. Lanyards. A lanyard is a specially designed flexible line that has a snap hook at each end. One snap hook connects to the body harness and the other connects to an anchorage or a lifeline. Lanyards must have a minimum breaking strength of 5,000 pounds. They come in a variety of styles, including self-retracting types that make moving easier and energy-absorbing types that reduce fall-arrest forces. Don't combine lanyards to increase length or knot them to make them shorter. Deceleration devices. Deceleration devices protect workers from the impact of a fall and include energy- absorbing lanyards and self-retracting devices. How to estimate total fall distance with a energy-absorbing l…

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# 29 CFR, Part 1926 - Subpart M Fall Protection (cont.) ## (b) (cont.) employee's body belt or body harness attachment point at the moment of activation (at the onset of fall arrest forces) of the deceleration device during a fall, and the location of that attachment point after the employee comes to a full stop. "Equivalent" means alternative designs, materials, or methods to protect against a hazard which the employer can demonstrate will provide an equal or greater degree of safety for employees than the methods, materials or designs specified in the standard. "Failure" means load refusal, breakage, or separation of component parts. Load refusal is the point where the ultimate strength is exceeded. "Free fall" means the act of falling before a personal fall arrest system begins to apply force to arrest the fall. "Free fall distance" means the vertical displacement of the fall arrest attachment point on the employee's body belt or body harness between onset of the fall and just before the system begins to apply force to arrest the fall. This distance excludes deceleration distance, and lifeline/lanyard elongation, but includes any deceleration device slide distance or self-retracting lifeline/lanyard extension before they operate and fall arrest forces occur. "Guardrail system" means a barrier erected to prevent employees from falling to lower levels. "Hole" means a gap or void 2 inches (5.1 cm) or more in its least dimension, in a floor, roof, or other walking/working surface. "Infeasible" means that it is impossible to perform the construction work using a conventional fall protection system (i.e., guardrail system, safety net system, or personal fall arrest system) or that it is technologically impossible to use any one of these systems to provide fall protection. "Lanyard" means a flexible line of rope, wire rope, or strap which generally has a connector at each end for connecting the body belt or body harness to a deceleration device, lifeline, or …

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# FALL PROTECTION FULL BODY HARNESS Date Posted: 02/17/2024 Full-body harnesses are critical elements. f adequate fall protection systems. Workers must understand how to wear and use full-body harnesses when operating at height properly. When used correctly on the job, a properly fitted and properly worn full-body harness can help prevent serious injury or death. According to WAC 296-880-[redacted postal code], a full-body harness is required as part of a Personal Fall Arrest System (PFAS). According to the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), standard Z359.11 defines a full-body harness as "a body support designed to contain the torso and distribute the fall arrest forces over at least the upper thighs, pelvis, chest and shoulders." ## CHECKING THE FULL-BODY HARNESS BEFORE WEAR Before each use, you must inspect the safety harness. Check your harness for broken, burned, or pulled stitching and stitching or rivets where the hardware is attached. Also, carefully check the webbing, belt ends, and side and back D-rings. Spending a few minutes performing the following steps could save your life: buckles, • Pick up the harness by its back D-ring. - Gently shake the harness to let the straps fall into place. • Make sure the buckles are unfastened. • Look for damage, such as worn, frayed, or missing threads, cracked webbing, or foreign material on the fall harness. • Check the metal strap fasteners and side and back d-rings to ensure they aren't cracked or deformed. • If your fall harness uses grommets, ensure they are firmly attached and not deformed or otherwise damaged. • Make sure tongue buckles are firmly attached and not bent. ## FULL BODY HARNESS WEAR CHECK A poorly fitted harness doesn't just lower the protection level of the harness. It can do additional harm in the event of a fall. When a harness is poorly fitted for the worker or uncomfortable, they are more likely not to use it or use it incorrectly. The items below should be checked to…

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# Crane- and derrick-suspended personnel platforms (cont.) ## Personal fall-arrest systems (cont.) Anchorages that can't support 5,000 pounds must be designed and installed under the supervision of a qualified person and must be able to maintain a safety factor of at least two - twice the impact force of a worker free-falling 6 feet. If you don't know how much weight an anchorage will support, have a qualified person check it before you trust your life to it. ## Anchorage strength is critical, but is not the only factor to consider. Also important: • Anchorage connector. Unless an existing anchorage has been designed to accept a lanyard or lifeline, you need to attach an anchorage connector - a device that provides a secure attachment point. Examples include tie-off adapters, hook anchors, beam connectors, and beam trolleys. Be sure that the connector is compatible with the lanyard or lifeline and appropriate for the work task. • Attachment point. The anchorage can be used only as the attachment point for a personal fall- arrest system; it can't be used to support or suspend platforms. • Location. The anchorage should be located directly above the worker, whenever possible, to reduce the chance of a swing fall. - Fall distance. Because a personal fall-arrest system doesn't prevent a fall, the anchorage must be high enough above a worker so that the arrest system, rather than a lower level, stops the fall. Consider free-fall distance, lanyard length, energy- absorber elongation, and body-harness stretch in determining the minimum height of an anchorage from the lower level. Free-fall distance is the distance a worker falls before a personal fall-arrest system begins to stop the fall. Connectors. An anchorage, a lanyard, and a body harness are not useful until they are linked together. Connectors do the linking; they make the anchorage, the lanyard, and the harness a complete system. Connectors must be compatible with each other to prevent roll-out, and inc…

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# Crane- and derrick-suspended personnel platforms (cont.) ## Anchorage strength is critical, but is not the only factor to consider. (cont.) After onset of a fall, the device automatically locks the drum and arrests the fall. Self-retracting devices include self-retracting lanyards (SRLs), self-retracting lanyards with integral rescue capability (SRL-Rs), and self-retracting lanyards, personal (SRL-Ps) and hybrid combinations of these. ## Self-Retracting Device Classes: • Class 1. Self-retracting devices which shall be used only on overhead anchorages and shall be subjected to a maximum free fall of 2 feet or less, in practical application. • Class 2. Self-retracting devices intended for applications wherein overhead anchorages may not be available or feasible and which may, in practical application, be subjected to a free fall of no more than 6 feet over an edge type used in its testing. • Beware of swing falls! If you use a self-retracting lanyard or lifeline, work below the anchorage to avoid a swing fall. The farther you move away from the anchorage, the farther you will fall and the greater your risk of swinging back into a hard object. Swing falls are hazardous because you can hit an object or a lower level during the pendulum motion. WARNING: Lifelines anchored horizontally (i.e., at a level below the harness D-ring), including Class 2 self-retracting lanyards, need additional safety precautions when working near metal or concrete edges along decking, floors, roofs, platforms, formwork, and other surfaces. Since a fall from such hazardous edges may cause the lanyard to be cut, select and provide lifelines designed specifically for the application and follow the manufacturer's instructions for use. Protect lifelines against being cut or abraded by covering the edge with a protective material. | Swing falls can actually increase fall distance. Rope grab. A rope grab allows a worker to move up a vertical lifeline but automatically engages and locks o…