Anchors

HCL Safety supplies and installs a wide variety of anchors, the number and diversity reflecting all of the key design issues involved. The diversity of building materials used today provides different anchoring conditions for anchors but because of HCL Safety’s long and varied experience it is rare to find a base material that we have not already successfully fixed into. However, the properties of the base material play a decisive role when selecting a suitable anchor and determining the load it can hold. Additionally, the selection of the appropriate anchor component(s) and the fixing technique employed are also critical design issues, the determination of which is inextricably linked to the end performance requirements.

Anchors can be installed for individual performance, e.g. ‘Single Point Anchors’ or collectively as part of a much more complex system, e.g. ‘Latchways Horizontal ManSafe’. In addition, HCL Safety routinely supplies and installs anchors for non-fall protection schemes e.g. nuclear power stations, overhead cable trays and high street lighting; HCL Safety has the unrivalled experience to provide a bespoke solution to meet your needs.

The most frequently supplied and installed fall protection anchors are illustrated below.

Single Point Anchor Devices

A Class A1 single point anchor to BS EN 795 is one of the most cost effective and easiest methods of providing a safe method of work for where there is a defined, limited area of operation, e.g. window cleaning. The HCL SafeRing™ and Latchways PushLock® are classified as this type of fall protection anchor.

SafeRing™

SafeRing is a single point anchorage device to which a person working in a fall risk area can attach themselves, via a full body harness and fall arrest lanyard, to the building structure. In the event of a fall, the SafeRing anchor will ensure that the fall is safely arrested.

PushLock®

PushLock is designed to blend into the background in office environments and provide a single point anchor solution where aesthetic requirements are paramount. The system consists of two major components; a permanently installed socket, which becomes part of the building structure, and a removable eyebolt, which is attached to the operative’s PPE. Both components are manufactured from stainless steel.

Mass Friction Anchor Devices

HCL use Latchways Freestanding Constant Force® post either singularly as a single point anchor conforming to BS EN 795 Class E or in series (using Latchways ManSafe components) conforming to BS EN 795 Class C; both have been independently tested.

Constant Force Technology

The anchors utilise Latchways Constant Force technology, which is defined as “The mechanism used to provide a consistent method of absorbing mechanical energy and controlling tension within the system to a pre-determined Constant Force”.

Latchways Freestanding Constant Force posts are for use where it is impractical to install Constant Force posts or rigid anchor posts to the roof or supporting structure below and should only be considered where visits to the roof are infrequent. The anchors are designed for nominally flat roofs up to a maximum pitch of 5º and for situations where the arrest of a fall causes the anchor to move up a slope the maximum pitch of the roof is 15º. A full body harness and energy absorbing lanyard must always be used when connecting to the anchors.

Abseil Anchor

Performing strictly to the requirements of Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations (LOLER) 1998, the abseil device must provide a ‘working’ anchor, used to take the load of the operator and his equipment during normal abseil operation, and a ‘fall arrest’ anchor which provides a back-up means of fall protection should the ‘working’ anchor or the PPE attached to it fails.

To offer full protection, the two anchorage points must perform independently to one another, this being incorporated into the design of the abseil solution. Furthermore, the design of the abseil solution must acknowledge the intended modus operandi of the user, e.g. the anchor’s design and location must ensure that the user’s PPE ropes will not snag or their function become impaired during use.

Due to the potential complexity of abseil anchor design please contact HCL Safety for further advice and information.

HCL Service Commitment

We employ a full range of fall protection products to provide custom designed solutions to suit individual applications. No two situations are exactly alike and the solution must take this into account when considering the various impinging relationships between each of the design criteria. To ensure that all legislative and ‘local’ requirements are met, a competent and experienced person must carry out this assessment. When all the relevant criteria cannot be ascertained remotely, a full site survey and risk assessment will be required. Only when the HCL design team is satisfied that all the relevant information is known will a solution be proposed.

When work proceeds, the installations are undertaken by direct-employ, trained HCL technicians who commission and certify the systems upon completion.

To assist our clients further, the HCL handover includes awareness training for the use of the fall protection system and any supplied personal protective equipment. HCL is always on hand locally to provide clients with ongoing support that includes training, up-to-the-minute height safety advice and the very crucial annual testing and certification of the systems which is a legal requirement.

We are the UK market leader in the provision of fall protection solutions operating from eleven area offices, providing fast and efficient local support and services to any enquiry however large or small.

Key Design Issues

HCL can assist in designing your fall protection system to ensure it meets the necessary safety requirements. For further information on our in-house design service call 0800 212867.