Unquestionable Anchors, Questionable?

We will all be familiar with the term "an unquestionable anchor" but do we all fully understand?

Solid anchor points are fundamental to safe working at height, You can have the best equipment on the market, but this will do you no good if it is ultimately attached to a loose rusty handrail or fall arrest post!

Load or Pull testing each and every potential anchor point is impractical, therefore the majority of decisions made about what is safe are based on experience and common sense.

What is meant by "unquestionable"? Who determines whether it is unquestionable and what does the law and association say?

Definition - Unquestionable: not able to be disputed or doubted

One of the first factors to be considered is the load that the anchor point is intended to take. Even one persons bodyweight can exert a wide range of forces depending on the intended use, equipment used and setup of the anchorage system.

During a site survey as a supervisor, this should be high on your list of things to look at. What do we have in the way of anchors? Have you properly assessed them? Can you observe where they are attached to the sub structure?

How and where we attach to the anchor can affect the strength. Tying to the base of the anchor will reduce the leverage on the anchor.

So what does IRATA say?

IRATA ICOP 2.7.9.2 "..... Anchors and anchorages "should" be unquestionably reliable."

IRATA states that the static strength of an anchor (with the exception of some deviation anchors) should be at least 15kN (1.5 tonne). They arrive at this figure by implementing a safety factor of 2.5. The maximum impact load on the user (force applied to the body) in the event of a fall should not exceed 6kN. (IRATA ICOP 2.11.2.6)

As above, IRATA informs us that anchors should be of an adequate strength, bearing in mind the mass of the user including any equipment worn or carried (IRATA ICOP 2.7.9.5)

Ok so we have “unquestionably reliable” we have “15kN” and we have “should be of an adequate strength” but as an IRATA Level 3 How do we know??

I believe the answer lies in a little document called the TACS or to give its full title “TRAINING, ASSESSMENT AND CERTIFICATION SCHEME “ It states:

Rope access operations utilise a variety of anchors, from purpose-engineered steelwork and eye bolts to temporary ground anchors, weight-boxes and natural anchors such as trees. Rope access technicians with the responsibility for selecting anchors should ensure they are competent to do so. Further Training may be necessary. (IRATA TACS 6.4.2.1)

Both BS7985 and ISO 22846 part 2 reiterate the above. Anchors should: be unquestionably reliable (ISO22846 - 7.7.3.5 )

...... A single element of a structure, (e.g. structural steelwork), a natural geological feature or a tree might have adequate strength to provide a place for anchor points for both the working line and safety line. This should be verified by a "competent" person.(BS7985 - 12.3.1.3)

What do we mean by 'Competent Person"? A competent person is someone who possesses the necessary knowledge, training, and experience to assess, choose, and verify suitable anchor points for rope access work. Their expertise ensures the safety and effectiveness of the system, while complying with industry standards and regulations.

A competent person in this case might be a structural engineer. They perform several types of calculations to determine the strength and safety of a structure. These calculations depend on the type of structure (building, bridge, etc.) and materials used.

To determine what forces the structure must support, such things as dead loads (weight of the structure itself), live loads (Temporary or movable loads ie people) and Environmental loads (wind and snow loadings) will be considered.

“If you are in doubt in regards to the strength of an anchor then you should consult a competent person”.

I would suggest doing your homework before employing or seeking help from some of the people and companies that "claim" to be expert consultants, Just recently I was involved in a work scope where a third party was drawn in to carry out some testing and inspections. I won't go into details but lets just say "Piss Poor".

Whilst writing this I thought it wise and beneficial to not only rely on the standards and codes of practices, but to speak to Level 3s from numerous sectors and differing experience levels. Real world answers to a question that should be easy to answer...

So as an IRATA level 3 are we “competent” to decide what is and isn't unquestionable?

IRATA provides essential and quality foundational training/instruction (in some centres!!) With anchors within a controlled training environment being mainly engineered or professionally installed, but having the competence in identifying unquestionable anchors in the field is tied up in other factors and should be supported with additional training, operational experience and critical decision making skills, which can be learnt over time.

I asked several connections for their opinion and interpretation to the question of having the competence to decide what is and isn't unquestionable. The majority believed that with the experience and knowledge that they had built up, they were comfortable in making this decision.

In my opinion, For me, I am comfortable in deciding whether or not an anchor is unquestionable. If strength is becoming an issue, then common sense would dictate that it's probably not strong enough. Experience and further learning through courses, work shops and having a great group of mentors has aided me and others to come to such conclusions.

Im not for one instance suggesting within this that all Level 3s should be structural engineers, Nor am I saying that every job requires the consultation of a structural engineer or the like, but they should be competent in the selection of anchors. This also includes the ability to follow procedure and guidelines on equipment. As you will have notably seen from the pictures there is a definite pandemic of mis-use when it comes to anchors but equipment on a whole!

I hope this can start some conversations in regards to competency, equipment use, further training with industry professionals.

Please feel free to comment and share your thoughts, its only by expressing yourself through honesty will things ever change.

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The Rope Access & Climbing Podcast

by James Hollingsworth • 18 December 2020

To listen click the logo above or here. I had the opportunity to chat with Mikey Stevens from the Rope Access & Climbing Podcast on the subject of Rope Protection. Thank you to Mikey and his team for this opportunity. Notes from show: Hello and welcome back to The Rope Access and Climbing Podcast. Today I'm chatting with James Hollingsworth about a post he made on Linked In around the same time I posted about rope protection on Acceptable or NOT acceptable. (Nov 1/2020) In this hour-long episode, we will be diving into the facts about the subject and what IRATA and SPRAT state, how we got to this point, standards, and even cover several soft and hard rope protectors. There is no, one rope protector that does it all. But there are some that are better than others. Please note this is a ROPE ACCESS Only subject we are not talking about other industries like fire or arborist work. Also, we are just two guys from different parts of the world dealing with the same issues. So stay tuned. So please make sure to chime in, in the comments I would love to see what you have to say about the setups. *Disclaimer* Just because I say something is acceptable or not doesn't mean you can just go and use these setups at work. Before doing anything please talk to your subject matter expert for the company you work. Also, make sure that any and all gear you use on the job is approved and has a proper risk assessment done on it. Make sure you undergo proper training and have the proper information before proceeding with anything. Thank you* So make sure to subscribe to our channel here for many more videos like this, also don't forget to follow us wherever you get your podcasts. Instagram for all the latest updates. www.instagram.com/RopeAccess_and_Climbing Till next time, Mikey Stevenson

Rope Access Tips, Tricks & Chats

by James Hollingsworth • 18 December 2020

Click the logo above or here to listen to our chat about Rope Protection. Thanks to Leigh Greenwood and his team for this opportunity. Notes from show: This week we sit down with James Hollingsworth from White Dragon Access and talk about how we protect our ropes, what is competency and how do we measure it. This chat took place a few months back after James had up published some great information on LinkedIn about Hazard identification and Risk Assessment https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/hazard-identification-risk-assessment-james-hollingsworth/?trackingId=p9bHx%2BihH4xjRVtWCg%2Bs%2FQ%3D%3D James has added more publications since we had a chat, have a look at his LinkedIn profile for his latest information We also have a chat about High-Q UK's, ISOH course for rope access managers and technicians. https://www.high-q.co.uk/iosh-rope-access-training/

Rope Access Equipment - Selection & Inspection

by James Hollingsworth • 17 October 2020

An assessment should be carried out before each job to select the most appropriate equipment to be used. (IRATA ICoP 2.7.1.1) How many times have we just ordered a piece of kit, that we have never used or had any experience with? Do we read the instructions? Do we get it inspected? Hopefully this will cast some light on the do's and don'ts. So as a start we have to know the laws and regulations, Again as with the other articles I didn't want it to be a bombardment of quotes from regulation documents. But we have to know the facts. I have condensed a lot of it down and put where to find the information if you want to delve more into it. So no doubt you have heard of LOLER What is LOLER? Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 place duties on people and companies who own, operate or have control over lifting equipment. This includes all businesses and organisations whose employees use lifting equipment, whether owned by them or not. In most cases, lifting equipment is also work equipment so the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations (PUWER) will also apply (including inspection and maintenance ). All lifting operations involving lifting equipment must be properly planned by a competent person, appropriately supervised and carried out in a safe manner. LOLER also requires that all equipment used for lifting is fit for purpose, appropriate for the task, suitably marked and, in many cases, subject to statutory periodic ' thorough examination '. Records must be kept of all thorough examinations and any defects found must be reported to both the person responsible for the equipment and the relevant enforcing authority. Lifting equipment includes any equipment used at work for lifting or lowering loads (including persons), including attachments used for anchoring, fixing or supporting it. So in our case, as Rope Access technicians, Ropes, Harnesses, Karabiners and connectors, Slings and Strops etc all fall under LOLER. H ow do we select of equipment? So how do you select the equipment you use? research? prior experience? recommendation? or are you just given a kit or equipment to use? There should be an assessment before each job is carried out to find the most appropriate equipment to be used. The assessment should also pay special attention to the probability and consequences of misuse of equipment, taking into account any known incidents, e.g. as detailed in IRATA International safety bulletins. The selection and purchase of equipment should be carried out by, or approved by, a competent person, who has sufficient knowledge of the technical specifications required (IRATA 2.7.1.1) The ICOP goes into the legal requirements and the standards that equipment should conform, I won't list all the EN numbers for all the kit but for anyone that is interested the information can be found on page 21 of the ICOP and Annex C. If you are using a piece of Rope Access equipment for the first time you must: read and understand all the instructions for use. Get specific training in its proper use (You can record this within your log book) Become acquainted with its capabilities and limitations. Understand and accept the risks involved. So if you come across a piece of equipment you are unfamiliar with, don't be afraid to say so, There is no shame in not knowing something, the shame comes from not asking. If you have a competent Level 3 or equivalent and they are familiar themselves with said piece of kit, get them to run through the safe operation of it. This should be noted in the Toolbox Talk that the device has been fully explained and this should be signed to say you are happy with the use and instruction. W here to purchase? So you may or may not be involved in the purchase of equipment. As previously stated the selection and purchase of equipment should be carried out by, or approved by, a competent person, who has sufficient knowledge of the technical specifications required. Now as I have said in previous articles, I live in the real world, I know there are individuals out there that want to buy kit for the cheapest price possible or pick up second had stuff. Reality is you want to be using a reputable retailer/supplier of Rope Access equipment. Don't be tempted to buy off a bidding site or a social media market place. At the end of the day this is equipment that you are entrusting yours or someone else's life to. I personally use Abaris, the link is above. Will and the guys have always got what we need and if they don't they are quick to source. I do use other suppliers but I'd say 85% of equipment I get from Abaris. So with the equipment comes the manufacturers instructions, sales invoice and certificate of conformity (Keep these!). Ideally you want to purchase equipment that has a unique serial number. This will aid in cross referencing with respective documentation ( Traceability ). There is more information to be found on this in the IRATA ICOP 2.8.1 and ISO-22846 6.5.1 As I have said above getting kit with unique serial numbers makes life a bit easier. (For example some karabiners come with a batch number rather than a individual serial number) If for whatever your reason go for karabiners with batch numbers, I would recommend tough tags. These are tags that you can have printed with your own serial numbers and other information. I have been impressed at their longevity on kit that has been worked hard. Periodic Thorough Examinations We all get told this on our IRATA and BS7985/ISO22846 courses, LOLER actually word it slightly differently to that of IRATA. But the three kinds of inspection or examination we will hopefully know about are: Pre Use Check - consists of a visual and tactile inspection, which should be carried out before first use each day Detailed Inspection or "6 monthly" - This is the formal thorough inspection of the equipment carried out by a competent person. (We'll go into competency shortly) Interim Inspection - So I always remember IRATA's wording for this one, its an inspection of your kit after arduous or exceptional events, example of this would be you have been using a chemical, brick cleaner or used it in a incinerator when it was very dusty or gritty. So do you undertake a pre use check? Do you get your kit checked by a competent person every 6 months? Do you have a interim inspection done after arduous or exceptional use? So who's competent to inspect your kit? For Pre use checks, As qualified Rope access technicians we should all be comfortable in what we are looking at and what to look out for. There is no need to record pre use checks (unless a defect is found or it is your employing companies policy to do so). For the undertaking of a detailed (6 monthly) or interim inspection you have to be a competent person. The term 'competent person' is not defined in law but the LOLER Approved Code of Practice and guidance (paragraph 294 on competent persons) states that: 'You should ensure that the person carrying out a thorough examination has such appropriate practical and theoretical knowledge and experience of the lifting equipment to be thoroughly examined as will enable them to detect defects or weaknesses and to assess their importance in relation to the safety and continued use of the lifting equipment.' So can you inspect your own equipment? IRATA says "2.10.1.5 It is essential that the person carrying out a detailed or interim inspection has the authority to discard equipment and is sufficiently competent, independent and impartial to allow objective decisions to be made." But they also say that " A competent person may exist within a rope access company." LOLER 1998 says " The person must be independent from the employer’s line management. The competent person can be in-house or from an external organisation such as an insurance company." I think the important thing is to be professional , Do you really want to pass a piece of equipment that could jeopardise yours or others safety? Thats not just you inspecting your own kit, Do you inspect others kit? As LOLER says you should have appropriate practical and theoretical knowledge and experience of the equipment to be examined. How should equipment information be recorded? If you are the competent person in charge of equipment and inspection then you will probably be aware of the different ways you can record all the information of the equipment. These vary from a simple excel spreadsheet to PPE management software. So the simplest way is an excel spread sheet, It can be a bit of a laborious task to start with but once you have created your database it is easy to update accordingly. If you are looking at PPE management software, then you may want to look at Papertrail. They have developed a cloud based system which allows hassle free record keeping and has a good notification system where it will alert you when a piece of equipment is due for inspection. More details can be found on their website. So I hope this has been a useful read, I hope if you can take anything from this it will be to become more professional and safer in your approach towards working.