Five Safety Tips to Work Safely at Heights

Whenever you are working at greater heights, whether occasionally or routinely, always observe safety protocols and never become complacent. It only takes a single mistake to sustain serious injuries which could even lead to death. Thus, you should ensure that you have proper working gear and other safety measures in place.

If you are a manager, ensure that your employees have all the gears they need to work at great heights. In this article, we are going to focus on safety tips while working at great heights.

Safety tips on climbing greater heights

• Make proper use of ladders

At some point in time, you will need to use a ladder to go up. Most accidents occur on the ladder since most people take it for granted. There are some factors to consider when using a ladder and you should be aware of them; always have a four-to-one ratio of rise to run, make sure that you have at least three points of touch with the ladder at any given time and 3 feet extension of your ladder past the mark that you are climbing.

• Select the right PPE

Before climbing to great heights, you should always wear personal protective gear. These gears come with different capabilities depending on the nature of your work. Be sure to select the right gear at an affordable price. Also, it is important to first confirm that your protective gear is working properly before you begin your quest. You have to understand that the more functionalities on the PPE, the more expensive it will be and so on.

• Use railing

The railing is the easiest and the most commonly used form of protection when climbing heights. It does not require any training since the workers are only required to stay within the rail. There are a wide variety of rails that are used for different purposes including metal roof railing, non-penetrating roof railing, and parapet-mounted railing among others.

• Proper use of aerial lifts

Anything could go wrong at any moment as far as the aerial lift is concerned. In this case, let us focus on being properly tied off to the anchor – any person using the aerial lift must be properly tied off at the anchor without wrapping their lanyard around the rails. The lanyard should be able to protect them at the distance that they are working on. Lastly, you should always stand firmly on the work platform while using the aerial lift to avoid falling.

• Proper training

Lastly, above all other things, you should always train in ascending to great heights. Nobody was born to naturally climb great heights, but your determination and hard work in training could make the experience much better and exciting. Training helps to avoid possible errors that may arise. This training is also a requirement by law. It is also important to recap some of the safety procedures just before the workers start their duties.

Working safely at heights requires focus, proper training, proper PPE, and the right safety measures to be in place. Most accidents occur as a result of taking shortcuts in safety procedures and being complacent (pretending to know everything). Learning is a continuous process and you should always strive to sharpen your climbing skills even if you do the work daily. For more information on safety tips, it is best that you sign up to a working at heights safety course.