HSEP 13.

8a1, Fall Prevention System Requirements

1.0 GUARDRAIL SYSTEMS

Guardrail systems shall be so surfaced to prevent injury from punctures or lacerations
and to prevent snagging of clothes.
The ends of top rails and mid-rails shall not overhang the terminal posts, except where
such projection does not constitute a projection hazard.
Guardrail systems used around holes shall be erected on all unprotected sides and
edges of holes.
Guardrail systems used on ramps and runways shall be erected along each unprotected
side or edge
Guardrail systems shall be used around holes, which are points of access, such as
ladder-ways. Every ladder-way floor opening or platform shall be guarded by a standard
guardrail system including toe-boards on all exposed sides, except at the entrance to the
opening. The passage through the railing shall either be provided with a swing gate or barrier or
offset such that a person cannot walk directly into the opening.
Guardrail installation should occur as work progresses dont wait and then catch up,
Plan inspections for damage and proper construction and immediately replace damaged
guardrails.
1.1. Top Rails
Top rail height must be 42 inches plus or minus 3 inches above the walking and/or working
surface.
Guardrail systems shall be capable of withstanding, without failure a force of 200 pounds
(890 N) applied within 2 inches of the top edge in any direction.
When the 200 pounds (890 N) is applied in a downward direction the top edge of the
guardrail, it shall not deflect to a height less than 39 inches above the walking or working
level.
1.2. Mid Rails
Mid rails, screens, mesh, intermediate vertical members or equivalent intermediate structural
members shall be installed between the top edge of the guardrail system and the
walking/working and when there is no wall or parapet wall at least 21 inches high.
Mid rails when used shall be installed at a location midway between the top edge of the
guardrail system and the walking or working level.
Screens and mesh when used shall extend from the top rail to the walking/working level and
along the complete opening between top rail supports.
Mid rails, screens, mesh intermediate vertical members or equivalent structural members
shall be shall be able to withstand a force of at least 150 pounds (666 N) applied in any
direction.
Intermediate vertical members when used between posts shall not be more than 19 inches
apart.
1.3. Toe Boards
Toe boards shall be:

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 Erected along the edge of the overhead walking/working surface for a distance sufficient to
protect employees below
Capable of withstanding, without failure, a force of 50 pounds (222N) applied in any direction.
A minimum of 3 inches in vertical height.
No more than inch above the walking and/or working surface.
Solid or have openings not more than 1 inch in greatest dimension
Where tools, material, equipment are piled higher than the top edge of a toe-board, paneling
or screening shall be erected from the walking/working surface to the top of the guardrail
systems top or mid-rail for a distance sufficient to protect employees below.
Barricade the area to which objects could fall, prohibit employees from entering the
barricaded area, and keep objects that may fall far enough away from the edge or in a secure
container.
Erect a canopy structure of sufficient strength and size to protect workers under a walking or
working level.
2.0 FLOOR & WALL OPENINGS, HOLES AND COVERS
All covers, including those covers located in roadways, shall be capable of supporting at least
twice the weight of employees, equipment, and material that may be imposed on the cover at
any one time.
Covers shall be secured to prevent accidental displacement by attaching cleats to the
underside, tying the cover to grating, or other means to prevent accidental displacement.
Covers shall be color coded, or marked with the word hole or cover.
Identify openings and holes. An opening measuring 12 inches or more in its least dimension,
in any floor, platform, pavement, or yard through which persons may fall. A hole measuring
less than 12 inches but more than 1 inch in its least dimension in a floor, roof, or walking, and
working surface through which materials but not persons may fall.
Wall opening barriers shall be provided for all wall openings in excess of 30" high and 18"
wide from which there is a drop of more than four feet. Barriers shall be capable of sustaining
a 200-pound force.
Where there is danger of material falling through floor openings, they will be guarded by
standard guardrail and toe boards or hole covers that are secured against accidental
displacement.
Nothing is to be stored or placed on any floor hole covers.
Install protection as soon as an opening is created and immediately replace covers, which
have been removed or damaged.
Perform daily inspection and ensure proper maintenance.
Use fall arrest equipment when working near unprotected openings.
3.0 ELEVATING EQUIPMENT
Employees are required to be tied-off 100% of the time when operating or working in the following:
Aerial lifts, scissor lifts, and fork lift mounted work platforms see HSEP 17.9 Mobile Elevated
Work Platforms.
Crane suspended personnel work platforms see HSEP 17.3. Their use is limited and
governed by applicable regulations and should only be used as a last resort.
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4.0 HOUSEKEEPING
Keep walking and working areas free of debris, material, and equipment.
Enforce daily clean up of work areas.
Provide a sufficient number of trash containers for clean up.
5.0 EXCAVATIONS
Employees at the edge of excavations, trenches, wells, pits, shafts, or similar excavations six
feet or more in depth must be protected from falling by the use of guardrails, fences,
barricades or covers.
6.0 HOIST AREAS
Hoist areas four feet or more in depth must be protected by guardrail or personal fall arrest
systems.
If guardrail systems or portions thereof must be removed to facilitate the hoisting operation,
exposed workers shall be protected by a personal fall arrest system and the area shall be
barricaded.
7.0 DANGEROUS EQUIPMENT
Regardless of elevation, employees working from elevated positions above dangerous
equipment or conditions (machinery, electrical equipment, degreasing units, galvanizing
tanks, vertical rebar, etc.) must be protected from falling onto the hazard by fall prevention
methods, fall restraint systems, or equipment guards.
8.0 LADDERS
Three-point contact (two hands and one foot; two feet and one hand) is considered acceptable
protection for fall exposures of less than 20 feet.
1.4. Fixed Ladders
When the length of the climb is 20 feet or more, one of the following is required:
Landing platform every 30 feet when cages, wells, or ladder climbing safety devices are
provided.
Landing platform every 20 feet if no cage, well, or ladder climb safety device is provided.
Ladder climb safety devices can be used without platforms on towers, water tanks, and
chimney ladders over 20 feet but not more than 150 feet in unbroken length.
Ladder climb safety device shall be used with a harness, a connector that is no more than 9
inches in length between the attachment point on the harness and the point of attachment to
the grab device, and a grab device compatible to the wire rope or rail used or with a harness
and a self retracting lanyard anchored above the ladder.
1.5. Portable and Scaffold Ladders
Climbs of 20 or more should require the use of a personal fall arrest system when practical to
do so such as a retractable mounted above the ladder .
When working from a stepladder, if an employees feet are on or above the 5 th rung, the
stepladder must be tied-off or held by at least one other person. When the employees feet
are 6 feet above the ladder support surface, a personal fall arrest system is required.
Refer to HSEP 18.3 Ladders and Stairs for additional information

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9.0 MOBILE ELEVATED WORK PLATFORMS (MEWP)
Scissor lifts, aerial lifts and crane-suspended personnel baskets all require 100% tie off. Refer to
HSEP 17.9
10.0 LEADING EDGE, ROOF WORK AND WORK ON ROOF-TOP EQUIPMENT
Persons involved in leading edge and roofing work must be protected by either a fall
prevention, restraint or fall arrest system.
A warning line system is not permitted as fall prevention means for work on steep roofs. Fall
prevention or fall arrest is required at all times when performing work on equipment located
on any roof other than a low-sloped roof.
Warning lines used for low-sloped roofing work shall:
Be approved by the Project Manager.
Be used in conjunction with a monitoring system.
Be erected around all open sides of the work area.
Not be less than six feet from the edge of the fall hazard. (When mechanical
equipment is used, the warning line shall be ten feet from the edge that is
perpendicular to the direction of mechanical equipment operation.)
Be used to connect an access route to the work area by forming a path within two
warning lines, e.g., access and egress points, material handling areas, storage
areas, and hoisting areas.
Consist of ropes, wires, or chains, and supporting stanchions erected as follows.
Be flagged at not more than six foot intervals with high-visibility materials,
Be rigged and supported in such a way that the top rails highest point is
no more than 39 inches and lowest point (including sag) is no less than 34
inches from the walking/working surface and the mid-rail shall be
approximately midway between the top rail and the walking and working
surface.
Stanchions shall be capable of resisting, without tipping over, a force of
at least 16 pounds (71 N) applied horizontally against the top of the
stanchion in the direction of the roof edge.
The rope, wire, or chain shall have a minimum tensile strength of 500
pounds (2.22 kN).
The lines shall be attached to each stanchion in such a way that pulling
in one section of the line will not result in slack being taken up in adjacent
sections before the stanchion tips over.
No employee shall be allowed in the area between the roof edge and the
warning line unless they are protected by a guardrail, fall restraint system, or
personal fall arrest system.
11.0 SAME-LEVEL WALKING AND WORKING SURFACES
Good housekeeping is the key to the prevention of same-level falls.
Usable and waste material must be stored in designated areas out of passageways and shall
not be allowed to accumulate in the work area or around worktables, desks, threading
machines, etc.

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 Surfaces must be kept free of slipping hazards (grease, oil, chemicals, metal shavings, ice,
water, etc.).
To prevent tripping hazards:
Floor holes and openings shall be covered and secured.
Electrical cords, welding leads, hoses, etc. must be elevated a minimum of seven
feet overhead, lie flat and clear of doorways and walkways, or be relocated to create
a clear path of access/egress.
Tools and equipment must be located clear of travel paths on all walking and
working surfaces and away from leading edges and unprotected openings.
Maintain even and smooth floor surfaces or create an adequately marked,
smooth transition through use of ramps, etc.
Ramps or transitions that are not smooth or even require warning signs.

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