Accidents resulting from falls are the most common cause of death at most construction worksites in the United States according to the Occupational Safety and Health Association (OSHA). The percentage is extremely high, sometimes more than 85 percent yearly, companies lose money and productivity when their employee suffers from such an accident.
Although most companies conscientiously follow safety guidelines and make every attempt to be sure their employees comply with the company’s mandates concerning such a system, fall-related occupational accidents are still occurring with significant injury and sometimes death a result. Even with local, state, and federal laws mandating complete protection on any job site involving heights, this hazard still ranks as the number one work-related fatality in the construction industry.
Importance of Fall Protection Equipment
Serious injury and even death at job-sites resulting from falls do not need to happen and can be prevented. There is equipment that has been designed and proven to prevent such occupational accidents and injury; it is called the Personal Emergency Release (PER) system. Professional fall protection training is mandatory for employers to provide to their employees as directed by OSHA. Written records must be kept to certify that workers have undergone such a training program. If records indicate that an employee missed the training and/or indicated a lack of understanding of the information provided, employers are obligated to provide training again.
Personal Emergency Release (PER) System
Accidents can happen even to the most cautious worker and undesirable events such as falls show no mercy to anyone. To prevent and avoid a fatality due to an accident involving a fall, it must be mandatory for all employees working from any height to wear Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for safety purposes. Employees working with bucket trucks and other aerial lifts must follow these regulations and procedures when exposed to safety hazards.
A Personal Emergency Release system is an advanced means to allow a worker to function effectively and safely, especially with equipment such as boom trucks and other aerial lifts. Each affected employee needs to treat these safety items as any other bucket truck parts “must-have” item since they are very effective in preventing fall-related accidents.
One of the advancements that Personal Emergency Release systems offer is a dual protection feature. This feature allows the employee to be anchored to the bucket while at the same time being securely anchored to a nearby pole or some such stable object at the actual job site. In cases where bucket failure happens, the anchor attached to the bucket automatically breaks and releases the employee while the other anchor attached to the stable object remains secure.
Other Measures and Protection
Besides the Personal Emergency Release system, there are other preventive measures that a company can use to help their employees avoid falls at the job site.
- Hire Competent Workers – One of the best preventive measures a company can follow is to employ only competent employees to carry out any jobs that involve heights. These workers are ones who have undergone fall protection program training. The employee should know the proper selection, inspection, assembly and utilization of the Personal Emergency Release system and other fall protection equipment.
- Implement Proper OSHA Guidelines – The state of Oregon OSHA has published a “Fall Protection for the Construction Industry” publication that is one of the best examples of company guidelines available. This booklet explains what fall protection involves, why it is needed, and the role of the entire industry in preventing such accidents. It is readily available on the internet for review and printing.
- Get Professional Instruction – Companies operating within the construction industry frequently provide personal fall protection instruction and training using professional instructors. Such training would include the proper use of the particular equipment of that company. Individuals who have worked in the building industry may know a lot about preventing such accidents; however, the safest decision is to use trained, professional instructors for all safety guidance schooling.
Fall prevention such as the Personal Emergency Release system provides a benefit to the company’s by lowering overall costs related to such accidents and also helps prevent workers from receiving injury or even death from this sort of undesirable event. It should be every company’s priority, especially those companies engaged in projects and tasks involving bucket trucks and other aerial lift equipment to provide such training that is required to meet all OSHA safety guidelines. In particular, every company should provide their employees with a Personal Emergency Release system to give them the ability to carry out the company’s safety procedures. This cannot be overlooked!
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