truss spot?

[techieman33]

No, sorry, I probably confused you. The lanyard, is always attached to your harness. And the retracting line used for climbing the ladder is seperate, it's kind of like the dog leashes that you can let out really long, or keep to just a couple of feet. And it is reuseable, unless someone falls, then I'm pretty sure it would have to be replaced. Same for the rope running parallel to the truss. Which by the was is just a 3/8 sash cord most of the time, which if you use the proper kind is very strong. I wouldn't just go to home depot and buy a rope and try to use it. But I'm not exactly positive on all of this, so take this whole thread with a grain of salt. I have worked with it all before, but it's been a while, and I have never had any offical training.

Horizontal life lines are I believe in not dealing with them any longer, 5/8" cord that is also provided with the fall protection supplier kit which is way more than sash cord and specifically engineered both by way of it's termination and nature of the cord to be designed around fall protection in mind. If you find a 3/8" horizontal life lie... reject the use of it in a very serious way.

As for lanyards, see the above Y-lanyards we went to and others will also be going to. Remind your production company that such things are on the market each time they do expect you to be un-clipped. Many fall protection companies out there. If you use the gear, you are also the one that is most in need to stay in tuned with what is on the market in sugguesting to the production company providing the gear what you would like to be using. They in turn will in also using the gear take it back to the production company and hopefully get it changed.

The vertical fall arrester is 3/8" wire rope.

(OOPs' Very sorry in editing my post somehow I Ship take offense to me, edited your own post and can't figure out where I began or not other than in the Y lanyards. Still the intent is to help. Insist on the Y! Re-Edit you post if possible and again sorry for doing so.)

 

[SuperCow]

A maynard is stiched in such a way that it cas folds in most of it. If you fall, your weight rips the stitches apart and the maynard extends, and also slows your fall. On end clips to the D-ring on your harness, and you clip the opther to a hardpoint.

 

[jonhirsh]

Hey here is a link http://www.christielites.com/rental/rental.aspx?M=F&CAT=126&Pg=1

on it top to bottom

First full Body Harness
this is worn and you clip your ropes etc on to this

second Horizontal Life Line
this is cliped on a truss so if your climbing across it and you fall you dont fall far

Third Retractable Life Line
This is used when climbing up a truss ladder you clip it to your body harness it retracts like a seatbelt but with a sudden jolt will lock. this can be use many times but if a fall does ocure must be discarded do to safty regulations.

Fourth Lanyard Shock Absorbing
This you clip to your Harness when transfering to the truss from the lader you clip this to your harnness and your horizontal life line this can be used many times but it is best to replace it if a fall happens.


Hope this helped


Jon Hirsh

 

[ship]

One curious thing about lanyards is they don't do anything to slow the fall beyond the length of it - about 10' hits, than beyond that won't do much good to slow asscent before say after this as accelleration does not much match hitting the floor. Distance to the floor should play a factor into which components you use with fall protection thus, much less, in hooking into say a Geni, if it goes over, the fall protection won't do you much good. Also, once it is used it is cut up and replaced - you don't re-use even the harness.

In other words, while fall protection in general is a good idea, the debate of it's usefulness in distances under say 12', much less in clipping to a Geni is up for debate at times. At very least a harness given your speed is not enough to break your back or shock you would be useful still at these times but you have to realize that the lanyard is for distances of over 10'. Just a question at times of the lanyard thing in things like genie lifts etc. at short heights. The use of lanyards in the fall protection system is up for debate at this point by way of OSHA much less past debate on stagecraft.

For the climb up the truss ladder, it would be a vertical fall arrester used with a harness and lanyard - even a Y-Lanyard so you can clip onto your next horizontal fall protection safety line while still attached to the vertical as a better idea.

This vertical fall arrester is something that yearly must get tested by the factory or a either authorized service center of it every year - and not cheap but necessary.
This given you have not studied very specifically what they test and are as a now end user liable for it's inspection, compitent to have a yearly 200# fall test of the equipment to verify it will grab, in addition to the general inspection and inside inspection of it given you than have to break the seal that is also a liable thing.

The inspection is very expensive and very necessary. Where I work I was part of the first test by us of the equipment in realizing that it needed that yearly test for verification, and it being a in-depth inspection, but something we could also do as long as we went to the same extent and were now liable.

Free falls of about 6' tend to have the thing lock up in being a good thing but necessary yearly to verify. We do our own test but this given a very much more in-depth test than that first year where I was dropping 200# lengths of Soco cable off a balcany in testing the grabbing power of the vertical fall arresters. This in addition to taking it apart for an inspection. Not something just anyone can do. Still my name, it's date and certain doccuments had to be signed for each fall arrester.

I bring this up because more often than not given we had not thought of such a thing until a few years ago - much less had the gear but did not get it inspected yearly, I would not expect other companies who are charged with providing fall protection gear will have the vertical fall arrest gear tested yearly and this even if using it can be a problem. The vertical fall protection you use as provided by the company providing the equipment in it's certification often will not be tested. This inspection sticker and general condition is important to check before using the gear. It's probably going to be safe if in good condition, but something to have noted officially should you choose to use it still. I would not, but than again I'm now coming from more the management/liability side than the climbing on a no doubt 40 year old bosen's chair we found and used, in chaining to the grid with questionable methods and with out fall protection side - I would never now.

More specifically, with all rigging and fall protection gear, it is something the company that provides it should be verifying both by specific anual inspection of by way of inspection sticker and it being in good servical condition before the show and you risking your life with it. This is also something each person using it is also charged with inspecting and verifying. This applies to not only fall protection but any rigging. Every supplier and end user is responsible for safety.

Fall protection much less rigging or any part of safety or even re-lamping a fixture is not cheap. When it comes to someone dying given what is on the market and now necessary, there is no excuse.

As for truss, stage hands walk this type of thing, much less replel down from it or the grid in replacing either a bad lamp or even bad lamp base in a system every day. And I mean also repel down in addition to using fall protection to get there. Repelling I do know, and is also something useful to study and in this case get certified on if you plan to service the gear. More ascending than repelling also. No a drop line that has been dragged thru the mud or wound around stupid sharp edges is not a repelling rope, though by far too much in us by stage hands. For repelling since it's not a OSHA thing at this point, your own rope that you keep the record of - specifically static line if other than simple ascending is something you provide on your own. What repelling gear you use and provide including the rope at this point is a you thing. While both military and otherwise trained in repelling, I have not only the belt but because it's not a daily thing for me, also the shoulder harness attachment to it. Plus my own rope and equipment I am keeping the record of.

Repelling is different than fall protection. Do not cross the two in specific gear used or the usefulness in training on both. One you do provide your own training for and gear for - given you are the recognized repelling person, the other you would never but inspect what you are to use with fine tooth and comb.

 

[JahJahwarrior]

wow, I'm learning alot!! I have seen pictures of the maynards before, in some catalog. But I didn't nkow this much about them!! Thanks guys for taking a question and answering it VERY well!!

Ship, just wondering, what do you do, in your job? not that I'm a stalker, but where do you work? (company name and what they do, nto city) And how long have you been involved in technical theatre, and all this stuff? how;d you get involved? thanks!

 

[ship]

On horizontal life lines, they are 5/8" and specifically by termination and nature of the rope designed for this purpose. As for vertical fall protection, it's 3/8" wire rope coming from the equipment and also designed for this.

On the lanyards, there are Y lanyards out there now. We have gone to them by way of our rigging people saying they were safer no doubt for these same "un-clipped" reasons. In using the gear, specify what equipment you would wish instead to be using. Stay up on what is out on the market and industry for fall protection - lots of suppliers of it and your use of it would necessitate your own involvement in what is out there and how to use it. Chances are those production company suppliers of the gear are both just as concerned about your safety and that of their own neck when they use it. Thus you advising of say a Y lanyard would be both useful and something they might invest in.

 

[ship]

When at home at night, I intend to speak for myself.

 

[JahJahwarrior]

ah, Ship, you are wise! I never thought about all that. Could you tell me what your job is like, i mean, um, it's hard to describe. Like, myself, at my youth gruop, I run sound and lightgs, and fix anything that breaks. At your job, are you doing retail work, or gear rental, or do you fix things, or do you run live sound and lights, can you tell me that? also you never mentioned how long you've been working in technica things (not necessarily your job, but, how long have you been runnign sound, lights, whatever. ) or how you got started in it.

another thing I noticed, you used the word "like" as a filler word atleast 3 times in that paragraph, and that struck me as odd. i use it as filler alot because it's a bad habit, i'm trying to not use that word to describe things so often. i'm not horrible about it, but i do use it alot. it doesn't seem to me that you write it very often. whatever. i probably sound like a perv. "where do you work? what do you do? when did you start doing it? omg, you used the word like as filler! wow! " it's late. i'm tired. thanks Ship for all your help and all you others too whose usernames are longer and harder to remember==avkid and techieman are two i do rember but i'm too lazy to scroll down and write a speech thanking all of you for explaing to me what a truss spot and op is. thanks!

 

[Peter]

Very well said ship. It is a tricky thing to do, balence your personal life with work and other obligations. I would strongly encourage everyone to take a sec and stop and setep back and think about what you do and the implications it can have.


My crazy story about having to keep different aspects of my life seperate....

My neighbor for all my life has been my good friend "D." Since I was 6 or so i have been helping him on his farm. In HS I have been a student rep to our disctrict's school committee for several years. On school committee, he was the chairperson and must be refered to as "Dr. D." As a student speaking to the school committee, I often had to speak as: A Representative from the Student Council, An Individual Conserned Student, and A Citizen of the District (I was the only student at most of these meetings). Keeping which part of me was speaking clear was/is vital to them understanding what I am saying and what kind of weight it carries. (Just to add more fun to the mix, my neighbor is now the superinendent of my school disctrict!)

The moral of the rant..... Be sure the people you are talking to know who you are talking to them as!

 

[jwl868]

Hi

OSHA fall protection can be found at this website:

http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/fallprotection/standards.html



Details on fall arrest systems can be found in 29 CFR1910.66 AppC:

http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=STANDARDS&p_id=9730


An interpretation letter about OSHA and theater can be found below. (People can write to OSHA asking for official interpretations of the rules. These letters become public record.):

http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=INTERPRETATIONS&p_id=22337



Also, bosun is short for boatswain. OSHA has Boatswain chair requirements in 29 CFR 1910.30 (Scaffolds).



Joe

 

[RonaldBeal]

truss spots

Truss spots tend to most be used for backlight of performers, usually upstage of the performers positions. Having the backlight helps seperate the performer from the background so they are more visible.
(I have helped send up over 10000 truss spots, yes over ten-thousand.)
As for the safety equipment, if someone falls more than 10 feet, the equipment is not set up properly. Law says the equipment must begin arresting a fall within 6 feet, and that it must also prevent contact with any lower level. Additionally, once it begins arresting a fall, it must do so within 3.5 feet.
If a production company does not have "Y" lanyards, then you must use 2 lanyards. This is not negotiable. you must be clipped in 100 percent of the time if you are above 6'.
I have had one truss spot fall when going to her spot. All of the safety equipment worked as designed, and she was uninjured (her ego was a little bruised.) One coworker in New York fell when trying to re-address a VL1000, and again everything worked, no physical injuries, (I'll see if I can find the picture.) I know of several instances where people have had harness on, but did not clip in (not on my shows). They all died when they fell.
The golden rule (if you don't remember anything else from this thread, remember this You should be clipped in to properly installed fall protection equipment 100% of the time when you are above 6' from any lower level.
Hope this helps, and stay safe.

 

[JahJahwarrior]

I'm working out of a bucket connected to the lift arms of a lift like this:

http://www.genielift.com/ml-series/ml-1-5.asp

(not the exact lift, I couldn't find one like ours on their, but that's closest)

I work maybe 20 feet up maximum. What can I do about fall protection? I highly doubt our church will spend a few hundred on a real fall protection system, but if they were to, what would we buy, and, if not, would tying a rope (like for rock climbing) to a harness and to the lift help at all?

 

[techieman33]

There isn't really much that you can do, unless you have something to clip into above you. You can clip into the bucket, but I'm pretty sure it's not reccomended. It wouldn't really do anything, and if anything could risk you pulling the lift down on top of you.