Positioning of anchors for personal fall arrest systems for sloped roofs
Date
2019
Authors
Heidari, Azin, author
Olbina, Svetlana, advisor
Glick, Scott, advisor
Atadero, Rebecca A., committee member
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Abstract
Construction worker falls account for about one-third of all construction fatalities increasing 53% from 2011 to 2015 with most fatalities in the roofing trade. A personal fall arrest system (PFAS) is an effective means of fall protection and required by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). However, PFAS anchor point placement is an issue evidenced by the number of fatalities caused by incorrect anchor positioning (Hinze and Olbina, 2008). This research looks at a process to create a tool to optimize PFAS anchor points by: 1) Converting OSHA and American National Standards Institute (ANSI) regulations and standards for anchor point positions into computer-readable format; and 2) Developing a tool for optimization of locations of anchor points. A qualified field user performs the tool data input. Data include PFAS features (e.g. lanyard length) and project-related values (e.g. roof height). The tool then looks for the potential anchor locations that satisfy the fall clearance and swing hazard requirements. K-Nearest Neighbor Search (KNNS) algorithm was used as the optimization model for the tool. The tool was developed in Python programming language and was compiled into a standalone computer application with a user-friendly interface. The output of the tool includes optimized anchor points displayed both graphically and numerically. The tool results were validated using the K-fold Cross-Validation method and proved the tool output results to be adequately accurate. The contribution of this research is the development of an automated field-level process for steep sloped roofing companies that would help improve their safety practices.
Description
Rights Access
Subject
computer tool
fall protection
roofing construction
construction worker safety
anchor point
personal fall arrest system