APPLICATIONS
		Access Platforms, Stairs, & Gangways
		Roof Top Fall Protection
		Guardrails
		Catwalks
		Crane Rail
		Confined Space & Rescue
		Horizontal Lifelines
		Vertical Lifelines & Ladders
		Personal Protective Equipment
	INDUSTRY
		Truck Fleet
		Steel & Foundry
		Machine Guard
		General Industry
		Municipalities
		Oil – Gas – Petrochemical
		Construction
		Aircraft Hangars
		Rail Car
	PRODUCTS
		Uni-Track
		Single Point Anchors
		Uni-Grab / Uni-Ridge
		Swing Gates
		Roof Hatch System

Rail Car Fall Protection

As a loading supervisor, there is enormous pressure to keep your rail yard and train siding area safe and operating at maximum efficiency.

Losing staff due to falls is upsetting and makes it difficult to adhere to the rigorous operating hours and maintenance schedules required to keep your trains in service. Protecting your maintenance staff and creating a safe, accident free railcar facility is essential. Diversified Fall Protection can help you to develop a comprehensive railcar fall protection program.

800 foot, Gallows design horizontal lifeline system.

From an initial risk and fall hazard assessment, to a review of your facility’s structural elements, from installation of fall protection equipment to the onsite training of staff, DFP will partner with you to minimize falls and serious injury to your personnel.

Railcar Fall Protection for a Variety of Rail Yard and Siding Locations

The fall protection requirements for rail loading and unloading are diverse. Railroad workers face a variety of potential hazards at heights:

• + workers up on smooth, slippery tank cars
• + rain and snow covered ladder rungs and railings
• + unevenly loaded surfaces
• + moving vehicles and mobile anchor points for fall protection lanyards and lifelines
• + variable loading platform shapes and heights
• + workers stepping from one railcar to a car on the adjacent track

There is no one “best solution” to all railroad car and train siding fall protection hazards. Each situation is unique, requiring a site assessment and an engineered solution to meet your specific needs.

A fall protection system designed to accommodate the storage and servicing of stationary rolling stock, needs to provide different coverage from fall protection equipment installed for loading and unloading grain or coal. Industrial rail sidings found at factories, in underground mines, outside quarries, servicing wharves, foundries, refineries, warehouses, etc. each in turn need their own engineered solution to protect railcar workers from falls.

Railcar load and unload facilities typically require an overhead fall protection system. On taller, railcar facilities where working heights allow, permanent horizontal lifelines may work in addition to an overhead trolley fall protection system. For site-specific maintenance, or temporary railcar access, Diversified Fall Protection also offers portable fall protection systems.

Structural limitations within your facility define the type of fall protection equipment.

Railcar fall protection is unique because anticipated falls are from relatively low heights. In addition, workers may be required to walk the length of the railcar.

A fixed anchor point used to tether workers to a lanyard / body harness typically prevents workers from reaching an unsafe area. However, due to the combination of short fall distance and multiple, dangerous obstructions between the top of the railcar and the ground in the event of a fall, fixed anchor points and tethering lanyards are not appropriate for railcar fall protection.

Often, railcar fall protection requires an overhead trolley (or tram) allowing workers on the cars more mobility to move.

The overhead trolley system relies on a supported beam running parallel to the track covering a span near and at loading areas. The supporting beam allows for a continuous attachment for a lifeline lanyard and body harness. Typically, an articulated arm system supports an overhead rigid rail. Based on the needs of your facility we will put the support on either side of the track.

Alternatively, a cantilevered support arm allows the overhead lifeline trolley to mount between two parallel tracks providing overhead safety attachment for two railcar lines.

Installation of the fall protection equipment over your track does not interfere with train traffic. Due to the individual design and fabrication of each system, we can alter the course of the overhead beam to match unusual layout configurations at your railcar siding or to work around physical obstructions at your facility.

Regardless of the structural limitations of your railcar facility and the size of train group serviced, DFP engineers your fall protection system with several guiding principles.

• + Our goal is to engineer fall protection systems to provide complete access to the top and working side surfaces of all trains.
• + Fall protection must not interfere with workers’ mobility or productivity.
• + We engineer your fall protection system with ease-of-use as a primary goal to ensure compliance.
• + Finally, each fall protection system must meet OSHA and ANSI standards in a cost-effective manner.

These design principles, coupled with years of experience in railroad settings make DFP the ideal partner for all of your railcar fall protection needs. See images below for OSHA compliant railcar fall protection we have provided for our customers.

OSHA compliant T-Gallows design horizontal lifeline for multi-car railcar access.

Gallows style horizontal lifeline for fall arrest in railroad yard setting.

T-Gallows design horizontal lifeline provides railroad car fall protection on both sections of track.

Single Source Turnkey Responsibility

You receive single source responsibility for the design, engineering, fabrication, installation, training and certification of permanent and temporary fall arrest and fall protection equipment.

Fall Protection / Fall Prevention Training Programs

Glossary

FAQs

OSHA Fall Protection Compliance