fall arrest system anchor point
fall arrest system anchor point
(OP)
A fall arrest system is required to have an anchor point capable of holding 5000#. Is the anchor point required to hold this 5000# without exceeding the yield stress? I have a beam that can hold 4500# in the elastic region and about 8000# in the plastic region. Does this meet OSHA code?






RE: fall arrest system anchor point
"Anchorages shall be capable of supporting at least 5,000 lb per employee attached or shall be designed, installed and used as follows:
as part of a complete personal fall arrest system which maintains a safety factor of at least two; andunder the direction and supervision of a qualified person"
My interpretation is 5000 lb prescriptive is on yield of material which gives approximately 1.6 Factor of safety on ultimate. If you design the "system" you need a factor of safety of 2 on ultimate for the maximum load you will see in your "system".
RE: fall arrest system anchor point
My take on the wording is that these anchorages must handle these loads as a normal condition, e.g., not require replacement or checking after such loading.
TTFN
RE: fall arrest system anchor point
I also note that this company has a dedicated deprtment devoted to safety and is diligent in monitoring these anchor points.
RE: fall arrest system anchor point
continued inspection is also a must
RE: fall arrest system anchor point
Rule of thumb is...would you put on a harness and jump after the design is complete? If not, then replace the beam or add some meat!.
RE: fall arrest system anchor point
RE: fall arrest system anchor point
If there is any CODE or LAW that requires more than this, please let me know, otherwise I will leave the beam as is.
Thank you all for your posts,
Weron4u
RE: fall arrest system anchor point
I work at heights everyday and am familiar with OSHAs regs.
The anchorage must be capable of supporting 5,000lbs. per worker. However, personnel using personal fall arrest systems with a body harness must have maximum arresting forces limited to 1,800 lbs. There's also an allowance that a 'designed/engineered' anchorage can be designed with a 2:1 safety factor, which would then be 3,600 lbs.
In reality, virtually all shock arrest/decelerating lanyards produced today limit maximum forces to around 900lbs., and that's with a big boy falling.
If you've got an anchorage that's good for 4,500lbs, you should be able to sleep well.
OSHA requires all PFA to be inspected after a fall, so it's reasonable to assume the anchorage should be inspected as well.
Regards,
J
RE: fall arrest system anchor point