Anchorage Points
Your fall arrest system is only as strong as what you tie off to. A brand-new harness and lanyard won’t save you if they’re hooked to a vent pipe or a guardrail. Choosing the right anchor, and putting it in the right place, is just as important as wearing the harness.
- Construction
- General Industry
Words to know
- Anchorage: the structure you attach to, such as a beam, column or roof truss.
- Anchorage connector: the device that connects your lanyard or SRL to the structure, such as a beam clamp, strap, roof anchor or concrete anchor.
- Certified anchorage: an anchor that a qualified person has designed and certified for fall arrest, often permanent and labeled.
Strength requirement
An anchorage for personal fall arrest must be able to support at least 5,000 pounds per person attached, or be designed, installed and used as part of a complete system with a safety factor of at least two, under the supervision of a qualified person.
5,000 pounds is roughly the weight of a pickup truck hanging from one point. Most pipes, vents, handrails and light framing can’t hold that. Fall restraint anchors have a lower requirement (see Fall Restraint).
Common anchors
| Anchor | Key points |
|---|---|
| Roof anchors | Permanent or temporary. Nailed or screwed into trusses or rafters with the exact fasteners and pattern in the instructions. Many temporary ones are single-use. |
| Beam clamps and trolleys | Attach to steel I-beam flanges. Match the clamp to the flange width and thickness, and keep it on the flange. |
| Cross-arm straps and tie-off slings | Wrapped around structural steel or columns and choked. Use wear pads on sharp edges, and make sure the strap can’t slide down a column. |
| Concrete anchors | Installed in cured concrete with the right hole size and depth, or cast-in during the pour. Some fit through a cored hole and toggle behind it. |
| Horizontal lifelines | Must be designed by a qualified person. See Horizontal Lifelines. |
| Aerial lift anchor points | Designated by the lift manufacturer. Only use the marked points. |
| Davits, tripods and mobile anchors | Engineered portable systems for confined spaces, trucks, rooftops and parapets. Follow the set-up instructions exactly. |
Choosing a location
- Overhead, at or above your D-ring, to reduce free fall. Anchoring at your feet with a 6-foot lanyard can mean a 12-foot free fall, which is not allowed.
- Directly above your work area to avoid swing falls.
- Away from sharp edges, or use an edge-rated system.
- With enough clearance below for your equipment. See Calculating Fall Clearance.
- Independent of anything that supports a platform you’re on, such as a suspended scaffold.
- Don’t anchor to guardrails, ladder rungs, conduit, pipes, ductwork, light fixtures, cable trays, vent stacks or roof vents.
- Don’t anchor to a structure you’re not sure about. Ask the competent person.
- Don’t anchor to equipment that might move (like a boom or a crane hook) unless it’s designed and approved for it.
- Don’t wrap your lanyard around a beam and hook it back on itself unless the lanyard is made for it.
- Don’t attach more people to an anchor than it’s rated for.
Inspecting anchors
- Label legible, showing the rating and number of users
- No cracks, bends, corrosion or missing fasteners
- Fasteners tight and installed into solid structure
- Straps and slings free of cuts, burns and fraying
- Temporary roof anchors not reused if the manufacturer says single-use
- Permanent anchors inspected at least yearly and recertified on the schedule set by the qualified person
- Any anchor that has arrested a fall removed from service until inspected
Tip: Installing roof anchors is itself work at height. Install them from a protected position (like a ladder with the anchor point within reach from inside the roof edge) or with other fall protection.
Standards & references
- 29 CFR 1926.502(d)(15): Anchorage requirements
- 29 CFR 1910.140(c)(13): Anchorages (general industry)
- ANSI/ASSP Z359.18: Anchorage connectors for active fall protection systems
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