A question that seems to be asked more and more is “do my harnesses and lanyards fall under the same requirements as those used on construction sites?”. This is another one of the questions that I have no idea where it came from or how the myth that the Personal Fall Arrest System (PFAS) used in a general industry workplace somehow does not have to follow the same principles as that found on a construction site. This week OSHA issued a citation to a steel foundry that should help us destroy this compliance myth…
1910.132(c) Design. All personal protective equipment shall be of safe design and construction for the work to be performed.
As we can see, .132(c) is very vague and can be used to cover a lot of issues a CSHO may come across. Here are the issues noted in the OSHA citation:
Please pay close attention to the fact that the “manufacturer’s instructions” and “industry guidelines” were referenced in these issues.