At what height do you need edge protection? If you are working at height you will need to know about the edge protection regulations to keep workers and passers by safe from falls.
What is 'work at height'?
"Work at height" means working in any location where if there were no precautions, a worker could potentially fall a large enough distance that they would be liable to cause some variety of personal injury. Below are some pointers to know whether you are working at height.
- Working above the floor/ground level
- Potential to fall off an edge, through an opening, or fragile surface
- Potential to fall from ground level through an opening in the floor or a hole in the ground
Working at height does not involve falling on a level surface and landing on the same level. It specifically refers to falling from one level to a lower level. Additionally, working at height does not include walking up and down a permanent staircase within a building.
What are the Different Variations of Edge Protection?
There are multiple different types of Edge Protection available within the Working at Height industry.
They are listed below:
- Collapsible Guardrail and Handrail
- Fixed Guardrail and Handrail
- Freestanding Guardrail and Handrail
Collapsible guardrails are purposely designed in order to completely fold out into an out of sight position whenever the guardrails are not in use. This form of edge protection is extremely popular for historical buildings, including churches, heritage sites, and university buildings.
This is due to the folding nature of the mechanism. This means that permanent changes do not need to be made to the property, and the visual appeal of the building can be kept just as it has always been.
Collapsible guardrails can also be used for other visually sensitive buildings, such as new builds with modern architecture.
On the other end of the spectrum, there are fixed guardrails. These guardrails are designed in order to provide 24/7 edge protection for working at height staff and contractors. These systems are used permanently and are fixed to the parapets used during the working at height process.
They will consistently prevent workers from falling from a height and hurting themselves. Commonly, this type of fence will be fixed to the top of the parapet wall and will be secured through the coping stones. Of course, this is dependent on the wall's overall condition.
Though the guardrails are permanently fixed, the height of the fixed guardrails can be adjusted to be lower or higher by using an Allen key.
Freestanding guardrails are the next type of working from height system designed to protect Working at Height personnel. These guardrails do not penetrate the surface of the roof in order to install the system.
This is because the guardrails have a counterbalance design, meaning there is 20kg of weights attached to several sections of the guardrail. The guardrails are also highly versatile. They can be moved around easily and even removed with ease when necessary. This can be done as long as there is a qualified member of staff on-site to do the work.
When Should guardrails be fitted on the edge of a roof?
The best way to sum up this issue is by saying, not always. Guardrails are commonly referred to as edge protection, but the positioning of a guardrail's installation is entirely dependent on the individual's access requirements, as well as their particular specifications.
Generally, it is recommended for guardrails to be installed around the perimeter of the roof. This allows for safe access to the property's gutter and also allows for miscellaneous maintenance requirements, such as roof leaks and fixes.
Though, in some scenarios, it is actually not reasonable for the guardrail to be installed around the entirety of the roof perimeter. This means that the guardrails will be placed to allow for routine maintenance, such as maintaining air conditioning units.
As with all working at heights requirements, there are no two requirements which are the same. The methods and controls for safe access can have huge differences depending on the specifics of the access required.
Full risk assessments should always be undertaken by competent and fully trained professionals with sufficient knowledge and a full understanding of the specifics of working at height access requirements. The risk assessment needs to take into consideration all the hazards involved with working at height, as well as who may be harmed and how.
The assessment also needs to specify how often access to the space is required. This is all done in order to come to a proper conclusion on how much of a risk the job will be. If the guardrail system is chosen to be the most suitable form of protection then the risk assessment will determine where the edge protection will be installed or placed.
Can a guardrail be folded down?
Collapsible and folding guardrails are commonly used for properties where the visuals of the building play an important part in the specifics of the edge protection decision making.
The most commonly recommended positioning of a folding guardrail is around 1m or more away from the roof's edge.
A folded down guardrail which is positioned around 1m away from the edge of the roof, will leave a 2m demarcation zone with which you can safely set up the guardrail system.
It is highly unsafe to set up the folding guardrails without the use of any additional safety controls. Though this may seem silly, why not just use the additional safety controls to undertake the initially planned task in the first place?
You would find this question being answered during the early risk assessment stage of the process.
It may be due to the access required for multiple workers, and the first person needs to use personal protective measures in order to set up the guardrail, allowing their co-workers to follow after them and work in a protected environment.
One of the major benefits of a standard guardrail system, and one of the big reasons why guardrails are specified over a personal protective solution, is that the user does not need to participate themselves in the enforcement of the control method.
It is recommended to keep in mind that a degree of this benefit is lost whole using a folding guardrail solution. This is because the worker may need to actually set up the guardrail themselves.
Do guardrails need to be a certain height?
Guardrails should be constructed to a minimum height which is usually specified at around 1100mm. This can change depending on the application of the guardrail and the specific criteria of the standards you are attempting to adhere to.
If you are working on a construction project in Suffolk, Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire, Kent or London, you will be considering the safety requirements of your workers.
Follow the links below for construction site safety nets, crash bags hire and edge protection hire.
Edge Protection Hire Kent