Gearing Up for Work at Height

When a worker needs to carry out a task at height, it's important that they have fall protection equipment. This equipment is made up of various PPE that must meet the standards or regulations in force, which can vary from country to country. Here is a quick but complete overview of the tools and equipment used by workers at height.

The Helmet

Without question, it's important to protect your head on a worksite. Indispensable for work at height and certain industrial jobs, helmets provide effective protection from falling objects, or in the event that the worker falls. Petzl offers a complete range of helmets, built around two families: VERTEX helmets, which are durable and comfortable, featuring webbing suspension inside the helmet; and STRATO helmets, whose internal lining is made in two parts, with EPP (expanded polypropylene) and EPS (expanded polystyrene) for a lighter weight. These helmets are available is various versions: VENT models, for example, offer ventilation holes for better airflow (with sliding shutters on the VERTEX), or HI-VIZ models that offer a fluorescent outer shell with phosphorescent clips and reflective bands for optimal visibility of the worker, day or night.

One strong point of Petzl helmets is the DUAL chinstrap that allows the workers to adjust the chinstrap strength depending on the environment: high strength, limiting the risk of losing the helmet during a fall, and low strength, limiting the risk of strangulation if the helmet is snagged while the user is on the ground.

The Harness

Easy to use, comfortable, with numerous accessories, and technically suited to the constraints of the professions for which they're designed. Petzl harnesses set the standard when it comes to efficiency and safety for workers at height. Proud of our expertise acquired from decades of experience, we provide a complete range of harnesses that meet the needs of workers at height: fall arrest (NEWTON), work positioning (VOLT), suspension (AVAO), rope access (ASTRO), tree care (SEQUOIA), technical rescue ( FALCON); and of course, when specific regulations are imposed, our harnesses have specifications and features that are adapted to those standards. That's why certain models are available in European and international versions: in order to meet the requirements of European, Russian, and North American standards. 

Fall-Arrest Systems

Depending on worksite terrain, the fall-arrest system can be composed of fall-arrest lanyards with an energy absorber that limits the impact force transmitted to the user in the event of a fall; or mobile fall arresters, which are installed on the safety rope and follow the user during progression, whether they're on an incline or completely vertical. 

For fall-arrest lanyards, our range of ABSORBICA and JANE lanyards correspond to needs when progressing on lifelines without passing intermediate anchors (single lanyards with energy absorber), or when passing intermediate anchors and for progression on vertical structures (double lanyards with energy absorber). 

The use of mobile fall arresters is required when it's not possible to use fall-arrest lanyards. It's also imperative to use specific energy absorbers connected to the mobile fall arrester, to limit the impact force transmitted to the user in case of a fall.

And All the Rest!

Beyond these principle pieces of PPE, there are numerous other tools that could be used to complete the toolbox of a worker at height, depending on the task at hand: ropes, descenders, anchors, pulleys, connectors of all types, and of course packs to transport all this equipment! All of this is available in our diverse range of products, which are developed to function in harmony with one another, so that a fall-arrest lanyard ABSORBICA-Y is perfectly adapted for a NEWTON harness, for example. The biggest strength of our range is that it was conceived from the very beginning with the goal of bringing complete solutions to our users.