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There is one area of the fall-arrest procedure that is lacking in many companies. It’s not the part where a worker is saved from a deadly fall; there are many products now that protect workers at heights. It is the part after the fall: The time when you would hope to witness a well-organized rescue plan while a worker hangs suspended, held aloft by a thin nylon strap or steel wire. Even companies who believe they have excellent safety standards often lack cohesive planning for recovery once a …

If you have ordered a harness from DBI-SALA in the past you may recall that they come with a belt that is one size up from the harness, that is to say, if you ordered a medium harness, it would come to you with a large belt. The rationale behind this being, that once you have all of your work clothes on and the padding in the harness, a larger size belt would be needed to get around all of this. The belts are somewhat adjustable and the discrepancy in sizing only rarely seemed to presen …

Fall protection is one of those things you can never be too careful with so I am constantly getting questions about it. Here is an example: I am going to be doing some work on a platform that is only 1.8 meters off of the ground. My self-retracting lifeline (SRL) will therefore be hung about 3.8 meters off the ground.  I know that I am going to need fall protection, but will that be enough clearance to arrest a fall? I don’t want to hit the ground. Is 1.8 meters enough distance for …

Yesterday was an exciting day at PK Safety. A representative for Capital Safety and DBI/SALA came to show us some of their most popular products in action. The most exciting part of the visit, besides brushing up on our wealth of fall protection knowledge, is that their demonstration truck has the capability to do test drops. We were able to look at simulated falls with a restraint lanyard, a shock pack lanyard, a shock wave lanyard and an SRL. It was amazing to see this in person, b …

Here is a recent question I got on the application of rope grabs, lifelines and SRL’s. I hope you find it interesting: My company works in the residential sector of construction and renovations. Most of our work requiring harnesses is scaffold work for exterior finishing. At present we use a vertical line with a rope grab and 4 foot lanyards. I want to eliminate the possibility of workers falling the entire length of the lanyard. Can an SRL be used in conjunction with a vertical line an …

I often get questions about which fall protection harness is the best. Although the answer may depend on the application, there is one line that seems to stand above the rest. Let’s look at this recent question: I am looking for the lightest and safest possible harness for my workers to use at our wind site. We are currently using Exofit harnesses by DBI/SALA, but they are a few years old and we are looking to update. What do you recommend? DBI-SALA has been at the leading edge of …

Here is another question I recently received. I thought it might interest my readers: What does DBI stand for? DBI stands for Duncan & Buck Industries. Their story, however, does not end there. After their name was shortened to DBI, their company was bought by BH SALA from Sweden. They then became DBI-SALA. This company was then bought by the corporation Capital Safety, who is the current parent company. Most people still use DBI when referring to their products. Although th …

Over the years we have had a lot of questions about fall protection. It can have disastrous consequences if you don't have the right type. That being said, fall protection, in general, has been getting better and better. Here is a common discussion I have regarding SRL's. What is an SRL? While some people believe SRL stands for Self-Retracting Lanyard, it really is an abbreviation for Self-Retracting Lifeline. Although that term may not mean much to you at first, it is actually a somewh …

When using fall protection, even if you have the appropriate protection for your setup, it is important to know when to replace your gear. I recently got a question asking just that: I recently noticed that this hook does not look like the others. There is a red band on top of the hook and something appears to be missing in the same area. I have attached photos of the hook. Can you please look at the photos and tell me if something looks wrong? Is this just an older style hook or should we …

On any job where you are going to be working off of the ground, it is important to consider fall protection. Having the right type of fall protection gear can save lives and prevent injury. If you are unsure of which protection is right for you, as always, feel free to contact us and ask! Let's look at a question someone recently asked about obtaining the right kind of fall protection for a particular application: We operate 6 order pickers in our warehouse. Racking where the order pickers …