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When using active fall protection systems, which can halt potentially dangerous falls, workers wear industrial safety harnesses attached to a strong anchor point by lifelines or lanyards. Should they lose their footing or grip, the system catches them and supports their weight. With these benefits in mind, it’s clear why safety managers should guarantee that their fall protection lanyards and equipment are always ready for optimal use.
That "optimal use," however, goes beyond ensuring the equipment is undamaged and readily available. It also means choosing the right equipment from the start and training teams to know which safety lanyards they should use for different tasks. Before you audit your current inventory of fall protection equipment, learn more about the differences between different types of fall protection lanyards and lines—and where they work best—so you can give your employees the best tools for every job.
Why Use Lanyards When There Are Self-Retracting Lifelines?
Both lanyards and self-retracting lifelines are popular options for connecting workers wearing harnesses to safe anchor points that can support the weight of a fall. But these two types of hardware provide different capabilities: Self-retracting lifelines are made up of a housing unit and a retracting cable that can be as long as 30 feet. Workers on a horizontal platform can have a more extended range of motion, and the lifeline locks and retracts to make fall recovery easier. Fall protection lanyards are shorter lengths of wire, webbing, rope, or chain, typically about six feet long. Many offer shock-absorbing benefits. While they offer a short range of motion, they make up for it by often being more cost-effective and simpler to maintain.
In some applications, organizations default to self-retracting lifelines. Welders working in elevator shafts, for example, or construction crews that work across a wide range of elevations throughout the day can benefit from using self-retracting hardware as their go-to option. But lanyards offer distinct advantages in many other application:
They're Better for Budget-Conscious Businesses
Compliance with OSHA fall protection regulations, CCOHS standards, and other localized safety requirements is paramount in any business—but you have to achieve those safety objectives within a set budget. Lanyards that offer the same safety and security as lifelines can be a fraction of the cost. This means you can provide adequate safety gear for everyone, not have workers waiting until safety equipment is available, and keep a steady inventory available at all your worksites.
They're Ideal for Leading Edges
Lanyards are better suited for construction work, repairs, and inspections that require proximity to the edge of a building. Self-retracting lifelines typically must be attached to an overhead point, and those are rarely available in these environments. Instead, you'd have to use the lifeline as a horizontal line, which they aren't designed for the cable will wear and fray with constant exposure to a sharp edge, and the force of a fall at this awkward angle could snap through the line. Lanyards can be attached to a wider array of different anchor points above and on the level with workers.
They Absorb Shock
Falls are jarring, and even falling just a short distance before jerking to a halt can cause injury. Self-retracting lines are designed to lock into place as soon as they register a fall, but that causes an abrupt hard stop. Shock-absorbing lanyards are designed to elongate while more gently slowing and halting the fall. This reduces whiplash, hard impact, and other secondary injuries. Even in applications that require a self-retracting line, it's best to pair it with a shock-absorbing lanyard so workers have the benefits of both.
How to Choose the Right Lanyard for Different Applications
Whether you're using safety lanyards on their own or you're using them to connect an industrial safety harness to a self-retracting lifeline, your teams need the right type of harness. Consider these factors:
Reach Requirements
Lanyards set fixed radii for getting work done. Work with your operations teams to determine how much reach they need. A standard six-foot lanyard may be plenty, especially if they're doing a lot of work within a narrow range of space. They may be comfortable with less, or they may need far more (requiring both a lanyard and a self-retracting lifeline). Reach requirements determine both the safety lanyards you need to purchase and the frequency of anchor points you need around the elevated edge.
Fall Distance
A six-foot shock-absorbing lanyard demands more than six feet of fall distance to be safe. Carefully measure the distance between the anchor point and the next platform below.
Account for:
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The length of the lanyard itself
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How much the lanyard stretches
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Harness strength
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The accumulated length of the D-ring and connecting hardware at both ends of the safety lanyards
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A margin of safe space for guaranteed clearance
Depending on the work setup, you may be able to adjust either the elevation or the lanyard length to best comply with safety standards.
Familiarity With Equipment
Lanyards are visually simple, and that can save your workers a lot of time. Your staff can easily attach the lanyards to their industrial safety harness and equipment, inspect the entire length for fraying or damage, and pack it up at the end of the day. This simplicity facilitates on-site tasks, but it also makes it much easier to conduct internal safety audits and have accurate records about the state of your equipment. It even makes training simpler—workers who are new to working at tall heights can quickly be trained on how to safely use lanyards without feeling overwhelmed or making mistakes.
3 Common Applications for Fall Protection Lanyards—And What to Choose
Three of the most common applications for fall protection systems that benefit from choosing lanyards are construction, energy, and infrastructure.
1) Construction
Construction sites have many spaces where workers need to work either close to edges or on surfaces that overlap the edge of a building. Safety lanyards work best for these applications because they can halt a fall and minimize shock-related injuries. They're also simpler to securely fasten on a rapidly changing building without risking damage to the line. Consider options like:
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One-arm shock-absorbing lanyards for construction and maintenance tasks
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Rebar chains for tying rebar, wall forming applications, and climbing ladders
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Two-arm lanyards for supporting welders working at elevated heights, especially lanyards made from heat-resistant Kevlar fibers
2) Energy
Modern energy markets require workers to safely maneuver tall installations. One-armed and two-armed lanyards with shock-absorbing features can support workers as they climb towers to access wind turbines, maintain towers and oil rigs, and perform tasks along scaffolding.
3) Infrastructure
Infrastructure repair, maintenance, and management teams also need fall protection harnesses with the right characteristics for every task. This can include shock-absorbing lanyards for inspecting and working on steel erections, lanyards that securely attach to horizontal points on scaffolding, and lanyards that attach to stop cable systems on the ladders of telco towers and light poles. Water technicians also benefit from harnesses that can resist abrasion, chemical damage, and heavy forces so they can safely navigate high spaces and confined areas.
Find the Fall Protection Lanyards You Need With Tractel
Tractel provides organizations across the construction, infrastructure, and energy sectors that comply with OSHA and ANSI regulations, and each product is carefully developed to match the use cases in these industries that need fall protection the most. Contact us today to tell us what you're looking for, or explore our inventory by industry to simplify your search.