100% Tie-Off Can Mean the Difference Between Life & Death SafetyTalk The term 100% tie-off is often used on job site and tailgate talks, but does anyone really understand what 100% tie-off means? Protecting the worker from the fall hazard is always the first line of defense. When this is not possible, a fall arrest system must be used when the worker is working above 3m (10 ft). Most fall accidents occur when a worker is climbing to the work site (i.e. on a ladder) or transitioning from one area the next. To bring some relevance to this situation, I recently investigated an accident where if a 100% tie off was used, the fatality would not have occurred. The accident occurred on a summer day during which the worker was repositioning concrete forms. The worker was attempting to climb up the rebar cage to help guide the forms into position. As he was climbing, he lost his footing and fell approximately 15 feet and landed on top of the rebar. The worker was rushed to the hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. During my investigation it was found that the workers were not using any form of 100% tie-off when they were transitioning to the next work position on the rebar cages. They only secured themselves to the rebar cage when they were in position. The root cause of the accident was not being tied-off during the transition between work areas. The company was charged with not providing the proper protection for their employees and since then have implemented a 100% tie-off policy from the ground up. If most accidents occur when the worker is transitioning, it would only   Gabriele Fusco, P.Eng* make sense that they should be protected (“tied-off”) during this transition period. If a worker is using a single-legged shock absorbing lanyard this is impossible to do. Fall protection manufacturers have developed shock absorbers with 2 legs (100% tie-off lanyards) to protect workers when transitioning up a ladder or around an obstruction. To explain how to use a 100% tie-off lanyard I’ll use a simple analogy that most of us can relate to. Remember when you were a kid and at recess you were playing on the monkey bars. The hardest thing to remember was not to let go of your first hand before you secured you’re second hand on the next bar. Once you got the hang of “connecting” and “disconnecting” your hands on the bars you became a natural at the monkey bars. The same holds true for the 100% tie-off lanyard. You must be attached to an anchor point before you can “transition” to the next work platform (or next rung on the ladder). Once you reach the next platform you connect the second leg of the lanyard to the anchor point then you disconnect the first leg of the lanyard from the original anchor point. By using a 100% tie-off lanyard while transitioning you’re always protected in the event of a fall either during the transition or while working. 100% tie-off is common sense and once used effectively can reduce the number of near misses or accidents that happen on job sites due to falls. For more information on how to implement a 100% tie-off policy on your job site please contact IHL. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ *Gabriele Fusco, P.Eng., a professional engineer who has worked in the industry for over 12 years. Through his years in the fall protection business Gabriele has seen a gap in the market place between the product suppliers and the service providers. PeakWorks was formed to close that gap and offer customers a complete solution for aerial productivity. PeakWorks has combined the product solutions with real value-added services such as cleaning, inspection, and compliance services.