b'Engineered Fall Protection Systems for Commercial and Industrial Roofing Contractorsby Thom Kramer, P.E. , C.S.P. LJB, Inc.L ast fall, OSHA announced that falladding any additional penetrations in the roof after construction protection citations ranked as theand to incorporate it into the warranty, it is ideal to incorporate top violation for the seventh year inthe following items during a roof renovation or replacement a row, and fall protection training entered theproject:list at number nine. More importantly, the Guardrail or anchorages embedded in roof structureBureau of Labor Statistics recently announced that fall fatalities in the workplace increased from 800 in 2015 Certified rope descent anchorages often used for window to 849 in 2016a 6% increase in a year. Overall, workplacecleaningfatality numbers are also up 7%, and reached more than 5,000 Designated areas compliant with new OSHA requirementsfatalities for the first time since 2008. Skylight screensConsidering these data points, its no surprise that fall Protection at access points, especially roof hatchesprotection is, and will continue to be, a hot topic and focus for OSHA. And, with new fall protection regulations becomingRoofing contractors can provide additional value to their effective in 2017, compliance officers are focused on this issueclients and increase their scope of work by educating building and the specific items that have changed recently. Adding toowners on the regulation changes and explaining the benefits that, professional organizations like the American Society ofof incorporating fall protection items into an existing roofing Safety Professionals (ASSP) are working to specifically addressproject. Their biggest challenge will be finding a designer with hazards that create the potential for severe injury and fatalitiesthe right qualifications, expertise and experience.(SIF), and fall protection is a key category in this discussion. For example, OSHA 1910.27 (b)(1)(i) says that the building Business opportunities for roofing contractors owner must inform the employer, in writing that the building owner has identified, tested, certified, and maintained each While regulation changes can be a challenge for manyanchorage so it is capable of supporting at least 5,000 pounds organizations, the new rules can also provide business(268 kg), in any direction, for each employee attached.During opportunities for roofing contractors.re-roofing, it is much easier to analyze the roof structure and Many organizations find that implementing changes to roofevaluate whether a fall protection anchorage can be certified. fall protection is optimal during a re-roofing project. To avoidRoofing contractors can encourage building owners to take advantage of this opportunity to achieve compliance and 42 www.mrca.orgMidwest Roofer'