Fall protection for roofers is a very important topic in the roofing industry. California Code of Regulations oversees fall protection codes and has recently ruled on a groundbreaking issue. Security Bars are now approved for Title 8, Section 3212 Fall Protection Codes.
Rooftop safety and security products and practices are essential for a safe work environment. Roofing Contractors spend a lot of time ensuring they comply with codes and standards. Title 8, Section 3212 states:
“Every floor and roof opening shall be guarded by a cover, a guardrail, or equivalent on all open sides. While the cover is not in place, the openings shall be constantly attended by someone or shall be protected by guardrails. Toeboards shall be installed around the edges at opening where persons may pass below the opening.”
SKYCO Skylights led the push by manufacturers to update the standards so their customers could save time and money with a more universal, code compliant product. “Educating code enforcers was the first step to gaining compliance for our security bars,” explains Ryan Marshall, CEO of SKYCO Skylights. “This is huge because now our customers can save a lot of time and money by using code compliant security bars, setting them once and safely moving on to the next stage.”
Some exceptions apply but for the most part an opening on a roof needs to have fall protections. Properly covering each hole can be very time consuming for contractors. Placing a fall protection device (i.e. now security bars) and leaving it for rooftop security will save contractors loads of man-hours and liability and give building owners and occupants the security they need.
Most building owners require security bars for their building, it can lower insurance costs and liabilities, so installing a security bar that doubles as fall protection is a practical concept. For a 500k sq. ft. warehouse you can have upwards of 400 skylight openings.
“(2) Skylight screens installed below the skylight. Existing screens (i.e. burglar [security] bars) shall meet the following requirements if they will be relied upon for fall protection.” -California Code of Regulations.
Not all security bars are approved for Title 8, Section 3212. They need to withstand an impact test of 400 lbs. minimum, no opening can be larger than 12 inches horizontally, the lip cannot be higher than 1 inch, and in the case of broken skylight glazing no impalement hazard for worker who has fallen through.
SKYCO Skylights’ experienced team is knowledgeable in rooftop safety topics and codes but it is always best practice to speak directly with a code official. For the entire detailed requirements and regulations contact SKYCO Skylights (www.skycoskylights.com) or go to the California Department of Industrial Relations website (www.dir.ca.gov/title8/3212).
