Working At Heights Guidelines - About Us

1 Working At Heights GuidelinesRuaan BreedtExecutive Production ManagerSpiderWebb& Vice Chairman for Inland EXCO Agenda What Is Working At Heights ? Why Must You Have Fall Arrest Equipment? Fall Protection plan Responsibility to have Fall Protection Full Body Harness Lanyards Life Lines Work positioning Fall Arrest Systems Fall Factors Fall Protection V/S Fall Arrest Training Applicable Standards and listing Understanding Suspension Trauma and how to manage Is Working At height ? When a person is Working in a position where they can fall. Elevated positions Close to excavations Roof tops Underground Confined spacesWhy Must You Have Fall Arrest Equipment? Construction Regulation All work at an elevated position must happen in conjunction with a Fall Protection plan Document that forms a part of the safety file Fall Protection plan consist of: Base line risk assessment PPE requirements Rescue equipment Training requirements Rescue plan Procedures Legal requirementsFall Protection plan Base line risk assessmentAn assessment is done where work required is done by a competent person to identify the risks involved with performing work at height on aparticular job site.

2 Fall prevention equipmentEquipment that is used to prevent persons from falling from an elevated position, including personal equipment, body harness, lanyards, life lines or physical equipment, guardrails, screens, barricades or similar equipment. Fall arrest equipment Is equipment used to arrest the person in a fall from an elevated position, including personal equipment, body harness, lanyards, deceleration devices, lifelines or similar equipment, but no body Protection plan Rescue planAdocumented plan , of all risks relating to rescuing a victim from an elevated position, considering the nature of the work undertaken, and setting out the procedures and methods to be applied in order to eliminate the risk considering time and injuries. Rescue equipmentIs equipment used to rescue a person after a fall from an elevated position, including personal equipment, body harness, lanyards, rope, descending and ascending devices, lifelines or similar equipment.

3 Training This is training that is required to use the equipment, fit the equipment,and perform the procedures set out by the Fall Protection plan . Legal requirementsMakes sure all aspects of the rest of the OHS act and Construction regulation is upheld. Like Medical competencies, fitness, safety files To Have Fall Protection Fall protection is required before work begins. A Employer must supply a employee with the correct equipment and training to remain safe wile performing their duties. A Employee must use the equipment and training received by there employer to stay safe. User must inspect their fall arrest equipment every time! before use! The employer must make sure fall arrest and fall prevention equipment is stored correctly, maintained correctly and inspected by a competent person at the correct intervals. Every one Working at Heights must know all the procedures set out by the Fall Protection plan . Protection from falling objects is a requirement.

4 Employees Working in an area where there is a danger of falling objects must wear approved head protection fitted with a chin strap Employer must take steps to protect employees from hazards (establish barricades or build canopies).Responsibility To Have Fall ProtectionFull Body Harness Harness systems consist of either nylon or polyester and the best system will encompass the entire body (full body harness). Body belts can not be used for fall protection. A full body harness will evenly distribute weight across the waist, pelvis, and Lanyards connect the harness to the anchorage point. Must have a minimum breaking strength of 22KN Should be attached to a D ring between the shoulder blades above the employee. There are several types of lanyards that include: synthetic webbing, synthetic rope and shock of lanyards: Self retracting Eliminates excess slack in the lanyard (cable, rope, or webbing) Shock absorbing Device slows and eventually stops decent and absorbs the forces ( : rip the stitching -controlled tearing) Synthetic rope Absorbs some of the force by stretching Synthetic webbing Strong but not flexible (absorbs little force).

5 LifelinesLifelines consist of flexible material connected at one or both ends to an anchorage point, and can be temporary or permanent. There are two types of life : hangs vertically : connects at both points to stretch horizontally (serves as connection point for other components) . Work Positioning Restraint Allows users to be supported from a vertical surface ( : wall or telephone pole). Not a fall arrest system! Fall Arrest SystemsThere are 3 different types of fall arrest systems according to SANS 50363 :2003 / EN 363 : 20031. Full body Harness + shock absorbing lanyard 2. Full body Harness + self retracting Lanyard (fall Arrest block)3. Full body Harness + life line and fall is important to use the correct fall arrest system in the correct environment to ensure the fall arrest system suits the requirements. Fall Factors210 BestFall Factors210 BestFall Factors210 BestFall Factors210 Best Preventionsystem include: Guardrails Safety nets Covers Fences Barricades Fall Arrestsystems components include.

6 Anchorage points Lanyard Hooks Life lines Body harnessFall Protection V/S Fall ArrestTrainingAll employees Working at Heights must receive training by a recognized accredited service provider done to unit standards as by the construction regulationSouth African National Standards SANS 50354 / EN354 Personal protective equipment against falls from height -Lanyards SANS 50355 / EN355 Personal protective equipment against falls from height -Energy absorbers SANS 50358 / EN 358 Personal equipment for work positioning and prevention of falls from height -Work positioning systems SANS 50360 / EN 360 Personal protective equipment against falls from height -Retractable type fall arresters SANS 50361 / EN 361 Personal protective equipment against falls from height -Full body harnessesSouth African National Standards SANS 50362 / EN 362 Personal protective equipment against falls from height -Connectors SANS 50363 / EN 363 Personal protective equipment against falls from height -Fall arrest systems SANS 50364 / EN 364 Personal protective equipment against falls from height -Test methods SANS 50365 / EN 365 Personal protective equipment against falls from height -General requirements for instructions for use, maintenance, periodical examination, repair, marking and packing SANS 50795 / EN 756 Personal protective equipment against falls from height -Anchor devices-Requirements and testingSUSPENSION TRAUMAAND HOW TO PREVENT ITAgenda Introduction to Suspension Trauma The Human Body Orthostatic Intolerance Preventing Suspension Trauma ConclusionWhat Is Suspension Trauma?

7 An injury that is caused by the Fall Arrest or Rope Access harness. This occurs when the blood flow is cut off to the legs by the harness. Introduction To Suspension Trauma The medical effects of immobilisation in a vertical position Medical term is Orthostatic Intolerance The effects are nothing new Crucifixion is death from suspension trauma It presents an immediate threat of death to anyone immobilised in a vertical position Hanging still in an industrial, theatrical or sport harness Stretcher patients, performers, stuntmen, confined space workers The onset and progress is rapid and unpredictable All those Working at height must be trained in how to recognise, manage and prevent suspension trauma It does not normally affect people who wear a harness but who are:- Actively moving About (climbing, caving, etc) Suspended for only a minute or two (parachutists) The danger is when someone is unable to move, or forgets to bother!Introduction To Suspension TraumaThe Human BodyHumans are not designed to stand upright Our circulatory system was built for life on all fours Volume of blood vessels is much greater than that of the bloodSo, when we stand upright we have a problem Gravity pulls your blood into your legs Your heart is a positive-pressure pump it cannot suck!

8 The only way to get the blood back out of the legs is to pump it using another Human BodyLuckily, we ve evolved one!Muscular pumps The veins in your legs are entwined within the skeletal muscles, and when you move your legs, these muscles squeeze the veins, pushing the blood out of the way We have one-way valves in these veins, so each squeeze can pump the blood a short distance towards the heart Providing you are walking around, this process makes a heart in each leg and it s very effective! Try it take your socks off and stand still look at your feet and you ll see the veins all standing out and the skin red. Now walk around in a little circle and look again the veins are empty and flat, and the skin goes pale. Pumping in action!What If Your Blood Is Not Pumping & Circulating? If the muscles are not pumping the blood upwards, it pools in your legs You can lose several litres and go into shock Your brain tries shock for a while, but of course it doesn t help blood is still stuck in your legs.

9 After a few minutes, the brain goes for the last-ditch method If I faint, I fall over. I get the blood back Your Brain assumes you mustfall over. If you stay upright:- Your brain has no oxygen supply Your airway is at risk You will probably die within minutesOrthostatic Intolerance 1. Passive Death This is when the blood flow is restricted and the body tries to fix it. First the body raises the blood pressure and heart rate, then when this doesn t work it reverses the process dropping the heart rate and blood pressure. This makes the victim loose consciousness. The problem is not resolved as the victim is still hanging in the same position, the body keeps dropping the heart rate and blood pressure till the victims heart stops completely. An example of a rare scare recorded incident happened during US navy seal training simulation, a instructor simulating a rescue was found dead after only 6 minutes hanging in a Intolerance 2. Blood Poisoning The Body In a fall the victim can seriously injure the body in a cellular level When a cell dies it releases a chemical call myoglobinthis is normally cleaned by the liver and kidneys The amount of injuries sustained by the fall along with the other factors like the pressure in the legs caused by the restriction of the harness, increases the amount of this poisoning, so when the the blood flow is restored this myoglobinattacks the kidneys to the point that the victim may suffer from immediate kidney and renal Intolerance 3.

10 Heart failure When the blood is not circulating through the body it becomes starved of oxygen and for which the victim can get a platacuimbuild up in the blood. Plataciumis what causes the heart to beat. The excess of plataciumcould cause heart failure when the blood flow is Is Susceptible To be At Risk? The classic group are people who wear harnesses Sport climbers, cavers, parachutists, par ascenders, etc Industrial climbers Confined space workers lowered using a harness and winch Theatrical and circus performers, stuntmen and artists There are other ways to be immobilised Rescue stretchers, spine boards and splints Becoming stuck in a confined space So what happens? General feelings of unease Dizzy, sweaty and other signs of shock Increased pulse and breathing rates Then a sudden drop in pulse & Blood Pressure Instant loss of consciousness If not rescued, death is certainHow can suspension trauma be avoided Training Standing Step Demonstration Rescue Medical responseConclusion Remember although suspension trauma is rare, it can happen to anyone.