Overview of NIOSH-designed guardrail system.

Details

• Personal Author:
  Bobick, Thomas G. ; McKenzie EA Jr.
• Description:
  The primary cause of construction fatalities is workers falling to a lower level. Typically one-third of all fall-related deaths involve workers falling from roofs and interior edges, or through roof openings or skylights. These falls can be prevented by using guardrails. The output of a previous NIOSH project was a unique, patented, multifunctional guardrail system for use on a variety of unprotected workplaces in construction. The initial design was developed for use on residential roofing and is adjustable to seven roof slopes. Subsequent modifications have been developed for flat and vertical surfaces that need guardrail protection, such as stairs or balconies, decks, and holes that need protection. The current design will be field-tested by two WV residential contractors, with WVU Safety & Health Extension and WV Home Builders' Association during typical construction activities. Installation times, photos,videos, and worker feedback will be collected. Laboratory testing verified that the current design supported a loading to the top rail of more than twice the strength requirements of 200 lbs, as specified by OSHA regulations. Once this multifunctional guardrail system is commercially available, temporary guarding will be able to be installed at numerous locations on construction and renovation work sites. This innovative system should help to prevent fall-related injuries and fatalities. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Accidental Falls Accident Prevention Accidents Accidents, Occupational Biomechanical Phenomena Construction Industry Hazardous Substances Mortality Occupational Health Personal Protective Equipment Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety Safety Management Staff Development Workplace

  More +
• Keywords:
  Accident-potential; Accident-prevention; Accidents; Accident-statistics; Biohazards; Biomechanical-engineering; Biomechanics; Construction; Construction-industry; Construction-workers; Equipment-design; Equipment-reliability; Fall-protection; Health-protection; Injuries; Injury-prevention; Mortality-rates; Protective-equipment; Protective-measures; Risk-analysis; Risk-factors; Safety-education; Safety-engineering; Safety-measures; Safety-practices; Safety-programs; Safety-research; Statistical-analysis; Training; Traumatic-injuries; Work-analysis; Workplace-studies
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Proceedings
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 3 ; West Virginia
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSR - Division of Safety Research
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  220-223
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20039956
• Citation:
  Research and Practice for Fall Injury Control in the Workplace: Proceedings of International Conference on Fall Prevention and Protection. Morgantown, WV: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 2012-103, 2011 Nov; :220-223
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2012
• NORA Priority Area:
  Construction
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Source Full Name:
  Research and Practice for Fall Injury Control in the Workplace: Proceedings of International Conference on Fall Prevention and Protection
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:7dc847c09aedf140bc731323e8446b4703641ae07d6ad9e7b7238120dab30b8f7dcaa9b938d34d035f87873a0fe7fec262d5d13dcaf290925445e82b6de3b57d
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/248163/cdc_248163_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 168.02 KB ]