AS/NZS 1891.4:2009 Industrial Fall-Arrest Systems and Devices - Selection, Use and Maintenance 2.1.1: 2.1.1 System and equipment selection: investigation before purchase

Before buying fall-arrest equipment, the intended use should be investigated to select the best system, including a risk assessment of special hazards (adverse environments, hazardous tasks). Factors to consider include the work type (pole work, high fixed platforms, ladders, confined spaces, sloping roofs, horizontal restraint only, EWPs, building maintenance units and suspended scaffolds); the potential fall and its severity (free fall, limited free fall, restrained fall, including restraint technique that could still allow a fall); the mobility the task needs while connected; and vertical and lateral fall distance and clearance limits. Table 2.1 sets minimum equipment and anchorage for each situation: restraint technique uses fall-arrest rated equipment with a lower-body harness and 12 kN anchorage only where any fall is limited to under 600 mm, otherwise a full-body harness and 15 kN anchorage; restrained fall on a pole uses a full or lower-body harness with a pole strap; limited free fall uses a harness and a lanyard or device limiting free fall to 600 mm with a 12 kN anchorage or equivalent lifeline; free fall uses a full-body harness and a lanyard or device limiting free fall to 2 m with a 15 kN anchorage or equivalent lifeline. Choosing one assembly that covers all the work situations of a job should be considered.