For some jobs and occupations, fall arrest anchors are a federal requirement. These devices or parts are secured to a solid secure location and firmly fixed to the structure. They are usually made of strong steel. A strong rope is attached to this anchor and the free end goes to a type of safety harness that a worker clips in around him. On many sites where high heights need to be worked on, these are as essential as hard hats. There are as many types of this piece of safety apparatus as there are different types of locations.

A fall arrest anchor could be permanently attached to a structure, where frequent maintenance or routine work may require a worker to go into location where a fall is possible. These are installed when a building or a tower is constructed. They are part of the plans the architectural firm put in and are one of the requirements mandated by law for larger tall structures.

During construction phase taller buildings may have a roof anchor that is bolted or riveted to purlins, which are horizontal braces between the rafters, or to the rafters themselves on a roof before the roof is sealed from the weather. After the roof is sheathed their are other types that clip into a mast in the center of the structure so workers will be safe.

Non-permanent roof anchors sometimes have ingenuous methods of clipping into a roof without compromising the weather tight seals. They can straddle the hip or ridge of the roof depending of course on the type of building and provide strong support.

For sky scrapers this bit of safety equipment is familiar to many though few think about it or see it. It is an essential part of window washing equipment and it is attached to the long line workers have clipped into their safety harnesses.

The federal government has many specifics of how strong these clip in points will be. The manufacture of these devices is tightly regulated and inspected. A fatality involving one of these or a failure of some kind is not frequently heard of. Of course if not installed right then a failure can occur. If you are using a non-permanent type all due precaution is encouraged when mounting or installing the safety point.

The tolerances and strength of any one of these will be well outside of what will be required to stop a person from a fatal fall. Some factors considered are where the attach point will be, the height of the likely fall, or how long a line is needed to fall clear of any danger, like power lines, and the likely mass of the person with material and tools will be.

For workers or anyone at heights where a fall could be fatal or cause serious injury, fall arrest anchors are essential safety hardware. Properly installed they can and do save lives. Different types of anchors are available for any structure and situation. Anywhere that a dangerous fall can occur and people need to work or move through the area, these are present. Occupational Safety and Health Agency, the federal bureau who over looks worker safety has documentation on these safety tools and should be consulted if you have a specific need and want to stay within the rules.

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