Fall arrest harnesses

Guidance on the care, maintenance and safe length of service of fall arrest harnesses.

All fall arrest harnesses in service in Australia shall comply with AS/NZS 1891.1: Industrial fall-arrest systems and devices - Safety belts and harnesses. (If you wish to purchase this standard it can be done online or in Tasmania from Standards Australia.)

All belt, harness and lanyard assemblies and fall-arrest attachments shall be clearly and indelibly marked or permanently labelled by the manufacturer with the following information:

• the designation, e.g. 'lanyard assembly', 'pole strap'
• the manufacturer's name, trade name or trademark
• serial number
• the maximum allowable free fall (for lanyard assemblies and fall-arrest harnesses)
• any necessary assembly, fitting and putting-on instructions (for harnesses)
• a statement indicating that the device has a specific application (if applicable)
• a statement indicating that the device is designed for use in one or more specific configurations together with any applicable limitations, eg. attachment points (if applicable)
• the month and year by which the item must be taken out of service (this shall be no more than 10 years from the date of manufacture) .
• the location of the primary load-bearing attachment hardware for attachment of lanyard assembly, pole strap or restraint line.

All height safety equipment shall be inspected prior to, and immediately after use.

Written records must be kept. A competent person shall inspect belts, lanyard assemblies, and associated equipment every six months.

Causes for removal from service

Equipment shall be removed from service if:

• it has been involved in a fall
• it is more than 10 years old
• labels have been removed, are missing, illegible or obliterated
• it has been exposed to high temperatures (eg. if it has been left in a hot closed car, or if there is evidence of melting, stiffness or charring)
• it has been exposed to extreme low temperatures or frozen (acid, caustic or organic solvent burns)
• it has had excessive abrasive wear (eg. furry or frayed surface)
• it shows signs of excessive general corrosion; has any pitting corrosion; or any cracked, distorted, burred, worn or broken hardware
• there are knots in any parts of the equipment
• there are broken fibres, tears, cuts, contusions, snags, splinters or slivers; deterioration or stretching of any kind; sunlight degradation; or weld burns
• there is loss of resilience, discolouration or other visible damage that cause doubt as to the strength of the equipment or potential overloading; or part mechanisms are not moving freely
• there is reduction in cross-sectional area of rope or webbing; or loose or unravelling of fibres, strands or stitching
• excessive contamination not removed by approved cleaning methods

Maintenance

For maintenance of synthetic textile materials, normal cleaning can be carried out with a mild soap and warm water. If more severe cleaning is needed, contact the manufacturer for advice.