Engineering for Fall Protection in Construction - An Online Course for Engineers

Fall Protection in Construction

John C. Huang, Ph.D., PE, LEED AP

Course Outline

According to the OSHA, fatal falls took the lives of 574 workers and injured tens of thousands more in 2013. This webinar provides a general overview of the OSHA safety regulations, fall protection equipment and methods, ladder safety and the best fall prevention practices. In addition, we will discuss about the engineering requirements for proper anchorage against fall and the designers’ role in reducing fall injuries and fatalities in construction industry. This course includes a multiple-choice quiz at the end, which is designed to enhance the understanding of course materials.

Learning Objectives

At the conclusion of this course, the student will:

Understand what the OSHA Fall Protection Standard covers;
Be aware of the requirements of the Standard; and
Be familiar with the proprietary fall protection devices available on the market.

Course Introduction

As a qualified person, an engineer may be asked to design a new fall protection system or to evaluate the structural adequacy of an existing fall protection system/component based on the OSHA design guidelines.

The following design issues are among those that need to considered in the design of a fall protection system:

1. The amount of free fall distance permitted by the system;
2. The maximum arresting force on a worker;
3. The strength of each components of the system;
4. The strength of the anchorage; and
5. The adequacy of the primary structure supporting the fall protection system.

In order to design a cost-effective fall protection system, one must also get familiar with the proprietary fall protection devices available on the market. The website of Miller Fall Protection contains valuable information of many fall protection components and systems.

Course Content

The following link contain the reference materials for this webinar:

Fall Protection in Construction (PDF file, 37 pages)

Because this course is offered as a "live" course, you are required to attend the webinar at the scheduled time and date. Please check the Webinar Schedule under course description on our website for currently scheduled meeting date and time. We will send you an invitation to the webinar through email approximately 24 hours before the webinar (confirmation of the receipt of the invitation is required). The certificate of completion will not be issued unless you attend the webinar and pass a quiz. Thank you for your cooperation.

Quiz

Before you attend the webinar, you need to print the quiz questions from your browser (to be used for the discussion during the webinar). At the end of the webinar, you need to complete the quiz and submit your answers to obtain the PDH credit.

DISCLAIMER: The materials contained in the online course are not intended as a representation or warranty on the part of PDH Center or any other person/organization named herein. The materials are for general information only. They are not a substitute for competent professional advice. Application of this information to a specific project should be reviewed by a registered professional engineer. Anyone making use of the information set forth herein does so at their own risk and assumes any and all resulting liability arising therefrom.