Forestry and Lumber

Design Considerations

Although it may seem obvious to use personal protective equipment such as lanyards and climbing harnesses to safely climb and descend from trees with heavy chain saws, the fall protection that begins in the forest must also continue to the lumber mill and beyond.

Roof guardrails, horizontal and vertical lifelines, and rigid rail fall protection systems utilized in lumber processing facilities must be designed with environmental factors, proximity to cranes and saws, and traffic flow taken into consideration. Fall protection and fall arrest systems must not interfere with worker mobility or impede the path of processing equipment in any way.

Because OSHA regulations apply to unprotected leading edges greater than 48 inches, a fall protection system is required to protect workers while tarping finished lumber loads on flatbed trailers. Eliminating the need to climb on uneven surfaces obscured by a tarp is considered a best practice. For this reason, the use of an automated truck tarp system operated from ground level is recommended.

Diversified Fall Protection has years of experience designing and installing fall protection systems for the forestry and lumber mill market sectors. Our understanding of your facility’s unique access points and fall hazards, combined with our turnkey approach to OSHA compliant fall protection, will keep both your work areas and employees safe.

As your partner in fall protection, DFP’s safety specialists will work with you to identify and secure all fall hazards at your site. Our fall prevention solutions include portable or fixed anchorage, safe access to reach at-height operations, guarding from open edges, and protection while maneuvering around industrial equipment.