YOUR ARTICLE on lanyard inspection (Lanyard inspection alert see links below) was very interesting. It brought to mind conditions and experiences I have encountered during the 31 years I have been in the field of safety. I am a safety consultant who works with clients in the construction industry. During job site safety visits I have observed lanyards in various states of condition. Some of the lanyards were donated by the employer when it was pointed out the safety concerns. Some of those donated lanyards were later tested and found to be seriously deficient. One lanyard was being used by a concrete worker who specialised in sacking and patching concrete walls. The cement dust had contaminated the rope lanyard to the point that when a drop test was performed, the lanyard broke at 620 lb of force, well below the required 5,000 lb (ANSI A10.14 & Z359.1).

Several rope lanyards were found at the bottom of a gang box. They were saturated with motor oil and form oil. Two of the lanyards broke between 900 lb and 1,100 lb of force. The third lanyard did not break – it stretched more than a foot, allowing the test weight to hit the ground.

One of the web lanyards was contaminated with dirt and who knows what. It had experienced ultraviolet degradation. The user had tied a loose knot at midspan. The drop test on this lanyard resulted in it breaking at 1,080 lb of force.

The lanyards were made by various reputable manufacturers. The informal tests showed that lanyards that are not taken care of, not maintained, not cleaned regularly and misused will fail, even when the lanyards originally met the required safety criteria (ANSI & CSA standards).

It is essential that anyone who uses fall protection equipment receives qualified training from a knowledgeable and experienced trainer. Training is a key element in a safety programme. Without knowledgeable users (the workers), fall protection equipment will continue to be misused and taken for granted.

The fall protection equipment must be inspected by the user and the employer’s Competent Person to ensure that the equipment is safe to use. Damaged equipment can be readily observed by the user. If the user waits for the competent person to make his/her annual or twice a year inspection, the user is gambling with his/her life.

The information covered in your article are excellent points which the users of fall protection equipment and the competent person should be using to inspect their fall protection equipment. Thank you for providing a simplified guideline.