Summer is the perfect time for roofing installations and other rooftop projects at schools and universities because class is out and the weather isn’t working against you. It also gives you the opportunity to upgrade your rooftop fall protection systems and enhance long-term safety. This often requires installing an extensive network of rooftop fall prevention equipment, including a roof hatch safety railing, ladder access gates, skylight fall protection (via OSHA-compliant skylight screens) and more.
But don’t worry—investing in this level of roof top fall protection now can help you safeguard your institution against accidents in the future. To get you started, we’ll walk through the importance of roof top fall protection, where this equipment is most critical and how to select the best safety options for your school.
Like any commercial or large-scale building, school and university roofs require extensive routine maintenance. In addition, campus structures usually emphasize aesthetics using skylights to boost an interior space’s ambience. At various times, facility or safety managers will be responsible for any of the following rooftop projects:
Rooftop and roof membrane repairs
Routine cleaning
HVAC maintenance
Installing safety guardrails to secure leading edges & block access to certain equipment
Securing roof hatches and ladder access points with roof hatch safety railing and ladder access gates, respectively
Repairing and securing skylights using OSHA-compliant skylight screens
Eliminating obstructions near fixed ladder and hatch openings
Installing signaling devices for transitions or material changes
Some schools go as far as creating secured, usable rooftop learning environments for activities such as gardening, astronomy and earth or atmospheric sciences. In these cases, roof top fall protection is of paramount importance.
The roof’s leading edge is one of the most important parts to secure. Doing so can be a big installation project, as it almost always involves the entire perimeter of the roof. This includes installing safety guardrails, which should be built to surpass the highest manufacturing and regulatory standards.
Guardrails are also necessary any time you must block access to:
Fall-through risks, such as skylights and hatches
Fixed exterior ladders
Heavy equipment
Depending on your roof’s structure and rooftop equipment, your railing might need to function across various unique transition heights at the edge. Raised midrails may also be necessary to accommodate suspended pipes, vents and other utilities.
You'll also need to consider the following when choosing rooftop guardrails:
Future rooftop maintenance activity or other uses
Roof access points, which necessitate particular types of railings, gates, and other equipment
The roofing material, which can impact how rooftop fall protection devices are installed (or violate the warranty on a roof top’s membrane if installed incorrectly)
Universities and most schools have large roof areas and highly specialized HVAC, electrical and other equipment, which requires numerous access points and extensive rooftop activity to maintain it all. Add to it a greater number of interior openings (such as courtyards and skylights) and you have an enormously complex roofing system.
These varied needs have driven demand for highly nuanced and more effective rooftop safety equipment. Here, we'll cover the equipment needed to facilitate the most common rooftop safety needs on your school or campus building.
> Exterior Access Points
Permanent ladders connected from the outside require a break in the leading-edge railing. This obviously requires an OSHA-compliant gate at certain locations – but what's not always obvious is that the optimal solution is to position the gate away from the roof's edge in order to create physical distance between the roof edge and the space where workers will be operating. This is accomplished with an enclosed guardrail area designed to:
Extend away from the ladder and onto the roof structure
Keep the gate at least six feet away (depending on your jurisdiction) from the leading edge
The ladder access guardrail system should also extend all the way to the ladder's handrails, for a continuous barrier on each side. If the top of the ladder has a parapet that workers must step over, be sure your ladder also has suitable handrails that extend over the rim of the parapet to prevent any tripping hazard.
> Interior Access Points
Wherever interior ladders or stairways open through and into the enclosed space directly beneath the roof, the access hatch must also be enclosed with specialized railing to prevent falls in the event of a hatch being left open. There are several types of OSHA- and CCOHS-compliant roof hatch safety railings available to solve this problem, including:
Safety rails on the lateral sides of the hatch (note that chain midrails are not OSHA-compliant)
Guardrails with integrated "grab bars" that extend to the hatch's ingress or regress
A fully enclosed safety rail and gate system, for maximum protection
> Skylight Fall Protection
Skylight fall protection must be as effective as it is easy to work around, so service technicians can easily and safely check weatherization seals, replace the covering and conduct other maintenance over time. Unlike hatches, a skylight doesn't have a metal covering, so it's important that OSHA compliant skylight screens can withstand the full force of a body stepping or falling onto the protection device. Per clarification on OSHA regulations, “Each employee on a walking/working surface shall be protected from tripping in or stepping into or through holes (including skylights) by covers” and that “[c]overs shall be capable of supporting without failure, at least twice the weight of employees, equipment, and materials that may be imposed on the cover at any one time.”
As a worldwide provider of fall protection equipment, we think it's best to cover all bases by using the highest-rated fall protection equipment available. Of course, this doesn't replace the need to investigate exactly which OSHA or CCOHS regulations apply in your specific location. In addition, ensure all OSHA compliant skylight screens are fully customized to the exact dimensions of your skylight.
With school and university roofs, summer installation projects can be just as complex as ongoing maintenance. Whether installing a full roof or just rooftop components, take the time to ensure your rooftop fall protection plans are laid properly. It will go a long way in ensuring you combine and accomplish every installation task efficiently, which will minimize unnecessary future rooftop activity in the first place.
For further assistance or to request a quote, contact BlueWater today. Our fall protection engineers are deidicated to providing innovative roof hatch safety railing solutions, OSHA compliant skylight screens, skylight fall protection and other rooftop safety technology that meets or exceeds the widest range of regulatory standards – and we're fully capable of creating custom solutions to match your school's unique roof structure.
