Why is Roof Anchor Verification Important?
Just look at the image above. Each one of these guys have a mother, sister, wife, and or children that love and care for them. It would be inconsiderate and a failure to not make the window washing industry as safe as possible.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration, OSHA, has been revising and updating fall protection standards consistently over the past 5 years. More specifically, OSHA’s 1910.140 speaks directly about Fall Protection, Safety Standards, and guidelines for insuring properly tested fall protection systems and roof-top anchors.
Professional Window Cleaning has many employees on ropes every day of the year as we work on different roof tops and buildings across Arizona. We found it very important to educate the owners of buildings and communities on OSHA’s standards for testing, verifying, and documenting the results.
Sadly, most building owners or property management companies are unaware that they are responsible for having their anchors tested, verified, and documented BEFORE anyone works on their roof. If building owners allow workers to use their anchors without proper documentation, they are subject to a $15,000+ fine from OSHA, as is the company doing the work.
Here is where we come in to help.
- First, we locate and label all anchors on the rooftop.
- Secondly, we use our industry’s best testing tool. The Veri5000 to measure the anchor’s integrity, and it’s ability to hold 5,000 lbs of force.
- Our measuring device will record the anchor’s exact GPS location, and the results from the test.
- We will tag the anchor as a pass or fail based on the results from the test. Each anchor will be clearly marked and dated.
- Lastly, we will provide a binder with anchor labels, pull-test results, and GPS location for your building to have on-site.
- If OSHA ever comes knocking on your door and asks for your anchor inspection report, you will know exactly where it is, and your building will avoid paying any unnecessary fines to OSHA.
Here is an example test result from a building we tested: