Hi All

We have a project to complete on a very large 1 Degree flat roof.

The roof has no edge protection so we suggested the client install a Mansafe clip on cable system. On contacting the Mansafe Installation company , they said they would need Edge protection in place to proceed with the installation. Point being,if we had an edge protection system in place we wouldn't need the Mansafe.

Would it be within the WAH Regs to work on the roof staying 2 metres from the edge at all times?  Access to the roof is by a plant room in the middle of the roof accessed from the factory by stairs.

All feedback is welcome to this Egg/Chicken scenario. Thank you in advance.

Originally Posted by: JoshBoam

What work is being carried out and how high up are we talking?

Replacing large amount of screws in roof cladding, approx 10 metres high.

...I have seen the 'don't go past this line' on some flat roofs...not a fan I must say but it would have been good enough to get the anchor point placed as it is not near the edge...but strange that the supplier wanted the client to do all the risk mitigation for him...surely his risk assessment and method statement would cover such eventualities...after all they are providing WAH protection...

First the 2m is a rule of thumb - it's not enshrined in law and I don't think it's even written down in the Health and Safety Executive guidance HSG33.

There are plenty of reasons why 2m might not be safe with or without a barrier. Slippery nature of roof surface [even if the pitch is only 1 degree - flat roofs traditionally defined as those having a pitch of no more than 10 degrees - cf Construction (Working Places) Regulations 1966 Regulation 35, I think defined a "sloping roof" - regulations revoked and now replaced by the less prescriptive requirements of the Work at Height Regulations]

....which slipperiness could be down to the nature of the sheeting and any surface contaminant such as ice, water, oil, moss.

....or wind. There's guidance from the National Federation of Roofing Contractors on limitations.

....and any barrier might not be sufficiently robust either in general or due to e.g. the wind speed.

Whilst not wishing to disagree with the advice of a supplier of a fall arrest system [partly as we don't know the reasons why they think that full edge protection would be required to install their system], in theory you could install such a system progressively working from the safety of restraint to the point of access onto the roof.

But, there's another but! If a fall arrest system is installed, it will need to to be maintained and tested [with appropriate precautions in case it's going to fail testing which is usually recommended at 6 or 12 month intervals].

If the roof isn't going to otherwise need to be accessed quite often this could be a very onerous issue for the client post the current works.

There might be a case for retrofitting permanent edge protection on some edges.

But without knowing much more about the specific roof, it's impossible to say what is the optimum solution.

If it's relatively new e.g. post April 1995, what does the CDM Health and Safety File say? Or is there an Operations and Maintenance Manual or similar document? Might be very good reasons why edge protection wasn't provided as part of the original design.