Fall protection.
(c) Body belts and positioning straps for
work-positioning equipment must meet the following requirements:
(A) Hardware for body belts and positioning
straps must meet the following requirements:
(i) Hardware must be made of drop-forged
steel, pressed steel, formed steel, or equivalent material.
(ii) Hardware must have a corrosion-resistant
finish.
(iii) Hardware surfaces
must be smooth and free of sharp edges.
(B) Buckles must be capable of withstanding
an 8.9-kilonewton (2,000-pound-force) tension test with a maximum permanent
deformation no greater than 0.4 millimeters (0.0156 inches).
(C) D rings must be capable of withstanding a
22-kilonewton (5,000-pound-force) tensile test without cracking or breaking.
(D) Snaphooks must be capable of
withstanding a 22-kilonewton (5,000-pound-force) tension test without failure.
Note to paragraph (2)(c)(D) of this rule: Distortion of the
snaphook sufficient to release the keeper is considered to be tensile failure
of a snaphook.
(E) Top
grain leather or leather substitute may be used in the manufacture of body
belts and positioning straps; however, leather and leather substitutes may not
be used alone as a load-bearing component of the assembly.
(F) Plied fabric used in positioning straps
and in load-bearing parts of body belts must be constructed in such a way that
no raw edges are exposed and the plies do not separate.
(G) Positioning straps must be capable of
withstanding the following tests:
(i) A
dielectric test of 819.7 volts, AC, per centimeter (25,000 volts per foot) for
3 minutes without visible deterioration;
(ii) A leakage test of 98.4 volts, AC, per
centimeter (3,000 volts per foot) with a leakage current of no more than 1 mA;
Note to paragraphs (2)(c)(G)(i) and (2)(c)(G)(ii): Positioning
straps that pass direct-current tests at equivalent voltages are considered as
meeting this requirement.
(iii) Tension tests of 20 kilonewtons (4,500
pounds-force) for sections free of buckle holes and of 15 kilonewtons (3,500
pounds-force) for sections with buckle holes;
(iv) A buckle-tear test with a load of 4.4
kilonewtons (1,000 pounds-force); and
(v) A flammability test in accordance with
Table RR-1. Table RR-1 [Table not included. See ED. NOTE]
(H) The cushion part of the body belt must
contain no exposed rivets on the inside and must be at least 76 millimeters (3
inches) in width
(I) Tool loops
must be situated on the body of a body belt so that the 100 millimeters (4
inches) of the body belt that is in the center of the back, measuring from D
ring to D ring, is free of tool loops and any other attachments.
(J) Copper, steel, or equivalent liners must
be used around the bars of D rings to prevent wear between these members and
the leather or fabric enclosing them.
(K) Snaphooks must be of the locking type
meeting the following requirements:
(i) The
locking mechanism must first be released, or a destructive force must be placed
on the keeper, before the keeper will open.
(ii) A force in the range of 6.7 N (1.5 lbf)
to 17.8 N (4 lbf) must be required to release the locking mechanism.
(iii) With the locking mechanism released and
with a force applied on the keeper against the face of the nose, the keeper may
not begin to open with a force of 11.2 N (2.5 lbf) or less and must begin to
open with a maximum force of 17.8 N (4 lbf).
(L) Body belts and positioning straps must be
capable of withstanding a drop test as follows:
(i) The test mass must be rigidly constructed
of steel or equivalent material with a mass of 100 kg (220.5 lbm). For
work-positioning equipment used by employees weighing more than 140 kg (310
lbm) fully equipped, the test mass must be increased proportionately (that is,
the test mass must equal the mass of the equipped worker divided by 1.4).
(ii) For body belts, the body belt
must be fitted snugly around the test mass and must be attached to the test
structure anchorage point by means of a wire rope.
(iii) For positioning straps, the strap must
be adjusted to its shortest length possible to accommodate the test and
connected to the test-structure anchorage point at one end and to the test mass
on the other end.
(iv) The test
mass must be dropped an unobstructed distance of 1 meter (39.4 inches) from a
supporting structure that will sustain minimal deflection during the test.
(v) Body belts must successfully
arrest the fall of the test mass and must be capable of supporting the mass
after the test.
(vi) Positioning
straps must successfully arrest the fall of the test mass without breaking, and
the arrest force may not exceed 17.8 kilonewtons (4,000 pounds-force).
Additionally, snaphooks on positioning straps may not distort to such an extent
that the keeper would release.
Note to paragraph (2)(c) of this rule: When used by employees
weighing no more than 140 kg (310 lbm) fully equipped, body belts and
positioning straps that conform to American Society of Testing and Materials
Standard Specifications for Personal Climbing Equipment, ASTM F887-12e1, are
deemed to be in compliance with paragraph (2)(c) of this rule.
(d) The
following requirements apply to the care and use of personal fall protection
equipment.
(A) Body belts and positioning
straps must never be stored with sharp or edged tools.
(B) Small tools carried in the belt must be
placed so they present the least danger of coming in accidental contact with
energized parts. Sharp or pointed tools must not be carried unless in
scabbards, or are otherwise effectively safeguarded.
(C) Work-positioning equipment must be
inspected before use each day to determine that the equipment is in safe
working condition. Work-positioning equipment that is not in safe working
condition may not be used.
Note to paragraph (2)(d)(C): Appendix F to Division 2/RR
contains guidelines for inspecting work-positioning equipment.
(D) The use of chainsaws is
prohibited on all overhead work where workers are supported by a single
climbing belt or rope.
(E) Workers
must not place positioning straps around the pole above the top crossarm except
where adequate protection is taken to prevent it from slipping over the top of
the pole. Workers must not allow either end of a strap to hang loose, either in
climbing or descending poles or other structures.
(F) Gaffs and Climbers.
(i) Gaffs and climbers must be maintained
according to the manufacturer's recommendations.
(ii) Workers must remove climbers before
driving any vehicle.
(iii)
Climbers must not be worn except when required. Workers must not continue to
wear their climbers while working on the ground except for brief periods when a
worker is necessarily off the pole.
(iv) While climbers are not being worn, the
gaffs must be properly guarded.
(G) Safety lines must be readily available
while working aloft to be used for emergency rescue such as lowering a worker
to the ground. Such safety lines must be a minimum of one-half-inch diameter
and three or four strand first-grade manila or its equivalent in strength
(2,650 lb.) and durability.
(H)
For employers engaged in general industry activities, personal fall arrest
systems must be used in accordance with Division 2/I. For employers engaged in
construction activities, personal fall arrest systems must be used in
accordance with Division 3/M.
Note to paragraph (2)(d)(H): Fall protection equipment rigged
to arrest falls is considered a fall arrest system and must meet the applicable
requirements for the design and use of those systems. Fall protection equipment
rigged for work positioning is considered work-positioning equipment and must
meet the applicable requirements for the design and use of that
equipment.
(I) The employer
must ensure that employees use fall protection systems as follows:
(i) Each employee working from an aerial lift
must use a travel restraint system or a personal fall arrest system. Paragraph
(c)(2)(v) of 1910.67 and paragraph (b)(2)(v) of 1926.453 do not apply.
(ii) Except as provided in
paragraph (2)(d)(I)(iii) of this rule, each employee in elevated locations more
than 1.2 meters (4 feet) above the ground on poles, towers, or similar
structures must use a personal fall arrest system, work-positioning equipment,
or fall restraint system, as appropriate, if the employer has not provided
other fall protection meeting Division 2/D, Walking-Working Surfaces; or
Division 3/M, Fall Protection.
(iii) Each qualified employee climbing or
changing location on poles, towers, or similar structures must use fall
protection equipment unless the employer can demonstrate that climbing or
changing location with fall protection is infeasible or creates a greater
hazard than climbing or changing location without it.
(I) The employer must ensure that employees
use fall protection systems as follows:
(i)
Each employee working from an aerial lift must use a fall restraint system or a
personal fall arrest system. Paragraph (c)(2)(v) of 1910.67 and paragraph
(b)(2)(v) of 1926.453 do not apply.
(ii) Except as provided in paragraph
(2)(d)(I)(iii) of this rule, each employee in elevated locations more than 1.2
meters (4 feet) above the ground on poles, towers, or similar structures must
use a personal fall arrest system, work-positioning equipment, or fall
restraint system, as appropriate, if the employer has not provided other fall
protection meeting Division 2/D, Walking-Working Surfaces; or Division 3/M,
Fall Protection.
(iii) Each
qualified employee climbing or changing location on poles, towers, or similar
structures must use fall protection equipment unless the employer can
demonstrate that climbing or changing location with fall protection is
infeasible or creates a greater hazard than climbing or changing location
without it.
Note 1 to paragraphs (2)(d)(I)(ii) and (2)(d)(I)(iii) of this
rule: These paragraphs apply to structures that support overhead electric power
transmission and distribution lines and equipment. They do not apply to
portions of buildings, such as loading docks, or to electric equipment, such as
transformers and capacitors. Division 2/D, and Division 3/M contain the duty to
provide fall protection associated with walking and working surfaces.
(J) Work-positioning equipment must be rigged
so that an employee can free fall no more than 0.6 meters (2 feet).
(K) Anchorages for work-positioning equipment
must be capable of supporting at least twice the potential impact load of an
employee's fall, or 13.3 kilonewtons (3,000 pounds-force), whichever is
greater.
Note to paragraph (2)(d)(K): Wood-pole fall-restriction devices
meeting American Society of Testing and Materials Standard Specifications for
Personal Climbing Equipment, ASTM F887-12e1, are deemed to meet the
anchorage-strength requirement when they are used in accordance with
manufacturers' instructions.
(L) Unless the snaphook is a locking type and
designed specifically for the following connections, snaphooks on
work-positioning equipment may not be engaged:
(i) Directly to webbing, rope, or wire rope;
(ii) To each other;
(iii) To a D ring to which another snaphook
or other connector is attached;
(iv) To a horizontal lifeline; or
(v) To any object that is incompatibly shaped
or dimensioned in relation to the snaphook such that accidental disengagement
could occur should the connected object sufficiently depress the snaphook
keeper to allow release of the object.
