What Fall Hazards are lurking at your facility?
By Shane Morrison
It is not always easy to foresee potential fall hazards at your facility. The first logical step in solving the issue of potential hazards is to survey the area and create a plan of action. In cases regarding fall risks, hiring a professional can provide a significant benefit if you are not well versed on local jurisdiction codes, OSHA regulations or ANSI Z359 standards. A service Gravitec offers is a Hazard Survey, designed specifically for this scenario, where a representative performs an on-site analysis of existing hazards throughout your site. Gravitec will identify the hazards, which is arguably the most important step, in addition to helping you prioritize, solve, budget, and plan for addressing the hazards that exist when working at heights.
1. Identify all existing and potential Fall Hazards.
The Hazard Survey’s purpose is not to reprimand for current safety practices, but to report and provide feedback in regards to meeting industry best practices and legislative requirements. The ultimate goal is to elevate the awareness of current risks and provide guidance on how to eliminate them or provide a cost-effective and user-friendly solution.
2. Prioritizing Fall Hazards by Probability and Severity.
The most severe hazards should require the most immediate attention.
Gravitec provides a Relative Risk Rating for each hazard that provides a guideline and a prioritized list to determine which hazards should be addressed first, based upon several risk factors.
3. Solutions to Fall Hazards.
Knowing all of your options is critical to making the best decision.
The comprehensive survey report provides up to 5 solutions for each hazard, ranging in complexity and price to assist in making budgetary decisions. We take pride in our ability to be flexible and knowledgeable, enabling us to cater the options to our customers’ needs. If there is not a pre-engineered option that will work, our staff of full-time, highly trained engineers, have the ability to design unique fall protection systems that other companies and manufacturers do not produce. Our specialized engineers can oversee the entire assembly process at our in-house fabrication shop. We understand the stress that can go into seeing your plan through to the end, and that’s why we have made it possible to handle every step of the process.
4. Determine Budget for a Solution.
Each solution provided includes a budgetary estimate for a turn-key solution. Having a budget any number to work with, allows you to plan and forecast how to manage your hazards as a whole by prioritizing, creating budgets, and making decisions on work procedures and access requirements that may mitigate the existing hazards altogether. The most complex or expensive solutions may not always be the best or most logical.
5. Plan of Action.
Once a decision has been made on which solution to implement, Gravitec is committed to helping you in every aspect of the fall protection process. Whether it be the design and installation of a system, helping establish your fall protection program, or training your workers to use the systems appropriately, we’ve got you covered. Keeping in compliance with OSHA regulations and local codes can be a stressful endeavor, and it’s Gravitec’s goal to provide simple and informative information to ensure your work environment is safe and secure.
If you have any questions, contact Gravitec Systems at 1.800.755.8455