Personal Protective and Life Saving Equipment

Personal protective equipment (PPE) includes hardhats, steel-toe boots, safety glasses, fall protection equipment, and safety nets. All PPE is governed by a common set of OSHA regulations. It is critical that employees understand PPE regulations.

• Where employees provide their own PPE, the employer must assure its adequacy, including proper maintenance and sanitation of such equipment.
• All PPE must be of safe design and construction for the work to be performed.
• PPE must be provided by the employer at no cost to employees.
• The employer must pay for replacement PPE, except when the employee has lost or intentionally damaged the PPE.
• Employees working in areas where there is a possible danger of head injury must be protected by protective helmets. The employer must provide head protection that meets American National Standards Institute (ANSI) specifications.
• Lifelines, safety belts, and lanyards must be used only for employee safeguarding. Any lifeline, safety belt, or lanyard subjected to in-service loading, as distinguished from static load testing, must be immediately removed from service and must not be used again for employee safeguarding.
• Lifelines must be secured above the point of operation to an anchorage or structural member capable of supporting a minimum dead weight of 5,400 pounds.
• Safety belt lanyard must be a minimum of ½ inch nylon, or equivalent, with a maximum length to provide for a fall of no greater than 6 feet. The rope must have a nominal breaking strength of 5,400 pounds.
• All safety belt and lanyard hardware must be cadmium-plated, drop-forged steel or pressed steel in accordance with Type 1, Class B plating specified in Federal Specification QQ-P-416. Surfaces must be smooth and free of sharp edges.
• All safety belt and lanyard hardware, except rivets, must be capable of withstanding a tensile loading of 4,000 pounds without cracking, breaking, or deforming.
• Safety nets must be provided when workplaces are more than 25 feet above the ground or water surface, or any surfaces where ladders, scaffolds, temporary floors, safety lines, or safety belts are impractical.
• Where safety net protection is required, operations must not be undertaken until the net is in place and has been tested.
• Nets must extend 8 feet beyond the edge of the work surface where employees are exposed and must be installed as close under the work surface as practical but never more than 25 feet below such work surface. Nets must be hung with clearance to prevent user's contact with the surfaces or structures below. Such clearances must be determined by impact load testing.
• The mesh size of nets must not exceed 6 inches by 6 inches. All new nets must meet the accepted performance standards, be certified by the manufacturers, and must bear a label of proof test. Edge ropes must provide a minimum breaking strength of 5,000 pounds.
• Forged steel safety hooks or shackles must be used to fasten the net to its supports.

To learn more about Fall Protection visit our Construction Fall Protection Online Training web page.