Fall Restraint Systems

A fall restraint lanyard is a critical piece of personal fall protection equipment used while working at height. When used correctly, it prevents you as the wearer from getting to a point where you can fall; this may be from a roof, cherry picker basket, or even working around an open excavation. In short, these safety lines are best thought of as the lanyards that stop you from having a fall, as opposed to fall arrest lanyards that catch you when you have a fall.

Our range of personal fall restraint systems includes adjustable and fixed-length lanyards made from various materials to suit different budget requirements. Many of the lanyards we stock feature different connector types to suit different applications, such as clipping onto scaffolding, a wire or bolted anchor point.

These lanyards are used in many applications across hundreds of industries, from the farmer who needs to inspect a silo to the television antenna engineer working on your garage roof; these applications and many others can be suitable candidates for fall restraint equipment.

Solar Installation

Whilst working at height on a rooftop, workers will use a restraint lanyard to keep from accidentally straying too close to the edge of the roof where they could fall.

IPAF Operators

Operators use a restraint lanyard when working at height in a scissor lift or cherry picker to keep themselves in the basket. It is usually adjusted so that the operator cannot lean over the edge of the basket.

Maintenance Work

When carrying out inspection or maintenance operations on rooftop equipment or the roof itself, a restraint lanyard is often attached to a horizontal anchor line that runs along the roof of the building, keeping the worker a safe distance from the roof edge.

Adjustable Restraint Lanyard

• It can be adjusted to suit each site you visit and each working area, meaning you should always have the correct length lanyard with you or at least need to carry fewer lanyards.
• You could forget to adjust it and accidentally leave it in a state that is too long for where you are working. This mistake would leave you with a false sense of security or allow you to fall.

Fixed Length Restraint Lanyard

• Once your lanyard is connected, you know that you don't have to worry about mins adjusting the length.
• You have to carry more lanyards to work sites, and you could still get to the work site to find out you need a lanyard between sizes.
• By carrying so many lanyards in your vehicle, you may mistakenly put on a lanyard that is too long, leaving you unprotected from falls.

Work Positioning

You can also use some restraint lanyards for work positioning. Work positioning is where you use a lanyard to take your weight whilst working and free your hands up. In this use case, these are most often used with a three-point fall safety harness and almost always in conjunction with a secondary lanyard.

Connectors

When choosing your lanyard, consider what you are connecting to. If you are working in areas with guard rails to connect onto or scaffolding, then something with a larger scaffolding hook is a great choice. If, however, you are going to connect to small anchor bolts, eyelets and cables, then you should consider a screw gate karabiner or twist lock karabiner.

How Are Fall Restraint Lanyards Different From Fall Arrest Lanyards?

The key difference between a restraint lanyard and a fall arrest lanyard is the inclusion of a shock-absorbing element. This shock absorber makes the fall arrest lanyard better for catching falls. It works with your harness as a complete fall arrest system, spreading the forces placed on the body out and mitigating the shock forces experienced. This factor may not sound important, but a fall of only a few meters can otherwise produce lethal force when a system brings you to an abrupt, instant stop.

In short, fall restraint prevents you from falling, and fall arrest catches you when you fall. Both systems have their place, but wearing the right type is critical.

What Are The Fall Restraint System Requirements?

There are several factors that you and your fall protection must do To be compliant; these include:

• Certification - Your lanyard should be made by a reputable company and come with accompanying paperwork to show that it has been tested and meets the standards deemed necessary by EN 358.
• Inspected - You must inspect your lanyard for wear each and every time you plan to use it. This inspection is to ensure that it will perform adequately when required. You must also have it inspected annually by a competent person.
• Used by a competent person - To be effective, you must know how to use your height safety personal protective equipment. If you do not know how to use it you cannot expect it to perform as intended. If you need help finding a training course, please contact us for assistance.

The Rest Of The Range

If you are looking for other height safety equipment, you are in the right place; we sell a lot more than just fall safety harnesses. Some different categories and products you may find of interest include;

Hard Hats

We have specific ranges for working at heights, including our Linesman, Skyworker, and VISTAlens Dualswitch helmets.

Lanyards

These come in various shapes and sizes and include arrest lanyards, restraint lanyards and positioning lanyards.

Retractable Blocks

These blocks feature self-retracting lines that you can use to limit falls.

Harness Kits

These come with lanyards and bags to keep all your height safety equipment safely contained and together.

Slings

use these to create anchor points around trees, posts and other fixed structures.

Hooks & Karabiners

Within this range you can find the connectors you need to tie everything together in your height safety setup.