Fall Protection & Fall Prevention

Slips, trips, and falls constitute the majority of general industry accidents. They cause 15% of all accidental deaths, and are second only to motor vehicles as a cause of fatalities. Management should implement fall protection and fall prevention programs to protect employees.

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Falls from evaluated locations account for the majority of deadly falls. Companies must identify fall hazards and implement effective fall prevention programs and fall protection systems to protect employees. The primary action is to eliminate fall hazards. The US Department of Labor reports that  falls are one of the primary causes of occupational death. When an employee is working at a height of four feet or more, the employee is risking a fatal fall: fall protection and fall prevention programs are required. Fall protection must be provided at four feet in general industry, five feet in maritime and six feet in construction. Fall protection is also required when an employee is working over dangerous equipment or machinery.

To start a fall protection program, you should first identify the all hazards.  Using fall prevention and fall protection engineering controls and fall protection equipment are the primary means of eliminating injury and death from falls. Using  work platforms, railings and toe boards provide permanent fall protection when working at heights

Fall protection systems are equipment and devices that arrest a free fall or that restrain an employee so that it prevents  a fall from occurring. 

Full-body fall protection harnesses wrap around the waist, shoulders and legs . A D-ring located in the center of the back provides a connecting point for lanyards or other fall arrest connection devices.

3 factors determine the arresting force from a fall: lanyard material type, free fall distance and the weight of the worker. The use of a shock-absorbing lanyard or a higher tie-off point will reduce the impact force from a fall..