Fall Arrest Training

How safe are your employees when working at height?

Do your employees have sufficient knowledge to identify the risks when working at height?

Are they able to choose appropriate equipment, using this correctly to reduce risk?

Do they know what to do in time of accidents or emergencies?

Fall arrest is of two major types: general fall arrest, such as nets; and personal fall arrest, such as lifelines. The most common manifestation of fall arrest in the workplace is the Personal Fall Arrest System, or PFAS ("lifeline").

Such a system should include 5 elements referred to as ABCDs of Fall Arrest:

• A – Anchorage – a fixed structure or structural adaptation, often including an anchorage connector, to which the other components of the PFAS are rigged.
• B – Body Wear – a full body harness worn by the worker.
• C – Connector – a subsystem component connecting the harness to the anchorage – such as a lanyard
• D – Deceleration Device – an essential subsystem component designed to dissipate the forces associated with a fall arrest event. It is good practice and recommended that these are also included in Restraint systems, in case of foreseeable misuse.
• E – Emergency Plan & Equipment – a clear and simple approach to rescue of a suspended worker following a fall arrest event. All workers should be familiar with the site specific plan and competent to implement it. If a suspended worker is not recovered in good time, they may suffer the potentially serious effects of "suspension trauma".

Each of these elements is critical to the effectiveness of a personal fall arrest system. There are many different combinations of products that are commonly used to assemble a personal fall arrest system, and each must meet strict standards. The specific environment or application generally dictates the combination or combinations that are most appropriate.

Fall protection training

Workers are required to have training in the use of fall protection equipment. This is legislated by Occupational Health and Safety Groups such as OSHA in the USA, and in Canada, the Provincial legislative bodies. Training is required to include instruction on theoretical aspects of using the equipment, and also practical aspects. Typically a fall protection, sometimes called fall arrest class is 8 hours long for general workers, but may include a second 8 hours of training for workers who climb communication towers, or oil derricks.

Fall protection training includes information on the use, maintenance, inspection and hazards of using fall protection equipment.

Our fall protection training will increase the safety of those who work at height, help to identify the risks involved and educate on the selection and correct use of personal fall protection equipment (PFPE). This is achieved by means of education, confidence building and the generation of awareness to the risks involved when working at height.

Courses are delivered by experienced instructors coming from a variety of industrial, construction and service backgrounds, all with extensive experience of working safely at height and all with the ability to pass on this experience in an informative, flexible and engaging way. All courses are a mixture of theory and practical, the practical element concentrating on work place based scenarios. This ensures that skills learnt are fully transferable to the individuals' work place.