Fall prevention systems
Fall prevention systems (or fall restraint systems) are safety systems designed to stop personnel from falling when working at height. Ideally, this type of system completely eliminates the hazard by making it inaccessible to personnel.
Fall prevention systems are active, which means workers have to take action in order to be protected. This aspect differentiates them from collective restraint systems, which are passive and require no action on the part of the worker.
Prevention systems use individual restraints to keep workers from falling. They incorporate customised harnesses connected to an anchor and safety line to keep workers from entering areas where hazards are located.
These systems must be professionally installed and should be regularly inspected to ensure compliance with health and safety and CDM (Construction Design and Management) regulations. These can be internal inspections carried out by the contractor, third party audits or external inspections by the Health and Safety Executive.
Fall prevention systems must be replaced when necessary. Training is required for proper use.
[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings Wiki
- Approved Document K.
- BS 7883.
- BS 7883 guide released.
- Collective restraint systems.
- Construction (Design and Management) Regulations.
- Fall arrest systems.
- Injuries on construction sites.
- Personal fall protection system.
- Safety in high places.
- Safety systems for working at heights.
- Site safety.
- Work at height checklist for managers.
- Work at height regulations.
- Work at height.
- Working at height - our duty to prevent harm and protect each other.
- Work at height rescue plan.
- Working at height training.
[edit] External resources
- Health and Safety Executive, A technical guide to the selection and use of fall prevention and arrest equipment, 2005.
- Health and Safety Executive, Inspecting fall arrest equipment made from webbing or rope, 2009.
- Health and Safety Executive, The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015, 2015.
Featured articles and news
Do you take the lead in a circular construction economy?
Help us develop and expand this wiki as a resource for academia and industry alike.
Warm Homes Plan Workforce Taskforce
Risks of undermining UK’s energy transition due to lack of electrotechnical industry representation, says ECA.
Cost Optimal Domestic Electrification CODE
Modelling retrofits only on costs that directly impact the consumer: upfront cost of equipment, energy costs and maintenance costs.
The Warm Homes Plan details released
What's new and what is not, with industry reactions.
Could AI and VR cause an increase the value of heritage?
The Orange book: 2026 Amendment 4 to BS 7671:2018
ECA welcomes IET and BSI content sign off.
How neural technologies could transform the design future
Enhancing legacy parametric engines, offering novel ways to explore solutions and generate geometry.
Key AI related terms to be aware of
With explanations from the UK government and other bodies.
From QS to further education teacher
Applying real world skills with the next generation.
A guide on how children can use LEGO to mirror real engineering processes.
Data infrastructure for next-generation materials science
Research Data Express to automate data processing and create AI-ready datasets for materials research.
Wired for the Future with ECA; powering skills and progress
ECA South Wales Business Day 2025, a day to remember.
AI for the conservation professional
A level of sophistication previously reserved for science fiction.
Biomass harvested in cycles of less than ten years.
An interview with the new CIAT President
Usman Yaqub BSc (Hons) PCIAT MFPWS.
Cost benefit model report of building safety regime in Wales
Proposed policy option costs for design and construction stage of the new building safety regime in Wales.
Do you receive our free biweekly newsletter?
If not you can sign up to receive it in your mailbox here.