What is rope access and why should you care?
Rope access is a work positioning method using practical rope techniques at-height to allow workers to safely and quickly work in vertical environments such as cliffs, buildings and towers. Because fall protection is an integral and automatic part of rope access, it offers increased safety over many other methods of working at height. It also offers greater efficiency and flexibility, lower costs, and often negates the need for expensive scaffolding or aerial work platforms.
Rope access is a 2 (two rope) system
- One rope is suspending the worker (main working line)
- One rope is not loaded but attached to a backup device to worker’s harness (safety line)
- Each one of these synthetic ropes is capable of suspending a ford explorer SUV; this is not a joke!
This is rope access work!
” Simple, Safe and Secure: This is Where It All Comes Together.”
– Eric Phillips, Rope Access Technician
Why you should care?
- Significant safety training that far exceeds all other industries’ requirements
- This translates to safer workers (safer workers mean fewer claims/losses)
- We perform all work in accordance with all OSHA and ansi standards
- Because of our 2 rope system we never face the “fall potential” any other industry in the world does.
- All involved tools are tied off to the system at all times keeping them from ever falling and damaging life or property.
- All work is “pre planned” throughout every step of the process.
As an industry, rope access has the lowest numbers of accidents and incidents leading to far fewer claims.
Many of the largest companies worldwide have fully adopted rope access as a cost effect safe means of performing the work they need.
“Rope access is only the bus that we take to get to work.”
– Trask Bradbury, Rope Access Technician
