It is a structure made from webbing, designed to hold the human body in the

event of a fall.

It is NOT designed to prevent injury from it’s use

Video of crash test dummy wear ing a convent ional f ront mounted safety harness taken at Mi l lbrook laborator ies.

Points o f impact and force d is t r ibut ion in a convent iona l harness

A convent iona l f ront mounted safe ty harness over a 4 met re drop

produces enough whip lash to break the neck.

* D a t a f r o m M i l l b r o o k l a b o r a t o r i e s

A poorly f i t ted conventional

harness can cause

strangulation in a fal l .

Possible injuries sustained in the event of a fal l wearing a conventional harness

•  Trauma to test ic les, womb, anus •  Spinal t rauma •  Groin t issue damage •  Tear ing to femoral ar tery •  Damage to k idneys and in ternal organs •  Hip d is locat ion •  Breast t issue damage •  Whiplash •  Col lar bone f ractures

Suspension Trauma?

Everybody who is suspended in a safety harness runs the r isk of shock and unconsciousness due to blood f low insuff ic iency. Unconsciousness can become l i fe threatening af ter only a few minutes.

* M L i e b l i c h a n d W R e n s i n g ( 1 9 9 7 )

Some form of pump is required in order to move fluid against gravity, and it is no different in the legs. The heart is an efficient organ, but with up to 20% of the blood volume being in the legs at any one time, it would have to work extremely hard at all times to maintain adequate venous return. Additional methods are required. These are provided by one-way valves in the veins and by the contraction of the calf muscles, which squeeze blood upwards towards the heart. If someone stood still for a number of minutes, up to 20% of the blood volume would be in the legs. This would place the body in to class 2 shock which could easily lead to loss of consciousness. He gives the analogy of the soldier fainting while on guard duty, described earlier in 1.2, and his rapid return to consciousness as the blood flow to the brain is restored. Having made the point that an unconscious person suspended in a harness would not automatically assume a horizontal position, he continues: “There are a number of factors that make suspension trauma in a climber/casualty different from that in our soldier.”

* D r R D a w e s ( 2 0 0 0 )

* D r R D a w e s ( 2 0 0 0 )

To fur ther compl icate mat ters, af ter 20 or 30 minutes of the harness d i rect ly compressing t issue, the condi t ion known as 'crush in jury ' wi l l resul t . This causes the re lease of large prote ins (myoglobin) f rom damaged t issues and when the harness (or bodyweight) is removed can be very damaging to the k idneys.

F a i l u r e o f t h e m u s c l e p u m p

t h e l e g s

R e d u c t i o n o f v e n o u s r e t u r n

D e c r e a s e i n v o l u m e o f

c i r c u l a t o r y b l o o d

F a l l i n c a r d i a c o u t p u t

F a l l i n b l o o d p r e s s u r e

A c u t e O x y g e n d e f i c i e n c y

O r g a n d a m a g e

C i r c u l a t o r y i n s u f f i c i e n c y

P a u l S e d d o n H S E 2 0 0 2

Depu t i es we re summoned Monday n i gh t t o a r u ra l a rea a f t e r o the r wo rke rs hea rd a ha rdha t f a l l and l ooked up t o see S tan ley dang l i ng f r om h i s sa fe t y ha rness . Au tho r i t i es be l i eve S tan ley s l i pped and f e l l , s t r i k i ng h i s head and be ing l e f t unconsc ious . Ano the r wo rke r l owe red t he v i c t im t o t he base o f t he r i g . S tan ley had d i ed by t he t ime emergency pe rsonne l a r r i ved . Sg t John Pape says t he wo rke r had a v i s i b l e head i n j u r y. No cause o f dea th was re l eased . I nves t i ga to r s d i dn ' t say how fa r S tan ley f e l l . Add i t i ona l de ta i l s we ren ' t immed ia te l y r e l eased .

* N e w s R e p o r t F e b r u a r y 2 0 1 5

GOLIAD, Texas - An o i l f i e ld worker in South Texas has d ied a f te r f a l l ing wh i le near the top o f a 50 - foo t r ig . The Go l iad County Sher i f f ' s O f f i ce on Wednesday iden t i f i ed the acc iden t v ic t im as 40 -year -o ld Sco t ty O 'Nea l S tan ley o f L iv ings ton .

To date, there is no ideal safety harness, but i t is l ike ly that — whatever the appearance of the safety harness — a re lat ive ly long per iod of t ime spent suspended mot ionless can lead to death. I t is recommended as a mat ter of urgency that when a safety harness is purchased, i t should be tested whi le suspended so that one can f ind the model which best f i ts the shape of the body. No safety harnesses should be used that does not adjust to the body… .

* B a r i o d a n d T h é r y ( 1 9 9 7 )

ZT SAFETY HARNESS A Safety Harness should NOT be considered as a first line of fall prevention for persons working at height. The ZT Harness, as with any other type of safety harness, should only be considered for the primary means of fall prevention while working at height as a last resort or as an additional safety measure. Working at height risks must be properly assessed by a competent person and alternate means of fall prevention considered first, such as safe working platforms, fixed guard rails/toe boards, Mobile elevated working platforms (Cherry Pickers, Scissor lifts etc).

•  Comfortable to wear

•  Create a stylish safety harness which becomes the users uniform

•  Eliminate or reduce injuries sustained in the event of a fall

•  Remains comfortable and pain free when in suspension

The Concept

Timeline

ü 2008 The idea is conceived

ü 2009 Initial testing is carried out by the UK HSE laboratories

ü 2011 Testing carried out by Sussex University and Millbrook Crash

Test laboratories

ü 2011 SATRA grants CE EN361-2002

ü 2015 SAI Global grants AUS/NZ AS/NZS 1891.1:2007

2011 Winners of IPAF & IAPA ‘Contribution to Safe Working

at Height’ award

Dur i ng r i go rous t es t i ng a t M i l l b rook l abo ra to r i es on beha l f o f Sa t ra (Eu ropean CE tes t i ng body ) a more accu ra te an th ropomorph i c dummy was used p rov id i ng ex tens i ve se t s o f da ta r e l a t i ng t o t he f o r ces app l i ed t o t he human body. These t es t s exceed requ i remen ts f o r a conven t i ona l ha rness .

Video of crash test dummy wear ing a f ront mounted ZT safety harness taken at Mi l lbrook laborator ies.

22 of the 26 accelerat ion / moment / load values are lower for the ZT suggest ing the ZT reduces the potent ia l r isk for certa in adverse effects on the body dur ing a fa l l .

S u s s e x U n i v e r s i t y 2 0 1 1

The Fall forces experienced are almost identical to those that would be applied to the body when

jumping down from a wall.

How does the ZT Harness work in the event of a fall?

Point of impact and force distr ibut ion in a ZT harness

The ZT harness d is t r ibutes forces away f rom the gro in to a more appropr ia te load bear ing

s t ructure of the lower l imbs and pelv is

C o n v e n t i o n a l Z T

C o n v e n t i o n a l

The ZT harness reduces whiplash and fall forces

by up to 60%

Z T

When deployed, the orange webbing A slides through the black upper structure B preventing the chest strap C from being pulled upwards

towards the neck

Strangulation

C

ZT Front attachment suspension posit ion

The user comes to rest in a semi-seated position.

ZT Rear attachment suspension posit ion

The user comes to rest in a kneeling position.

Component Strengths

O r a n g e w e b b i n g :

B l a c k w e b b i n g :

L e g G a i t e r :

L e g G a i t e r R o p e :

C h e s t b u c k l e :

3,000kg

3,000kg

1,000kg (each leg)

500kg x 6 loops = 6,000kg (each leg)

18kN (rear & work position harness only)

The ZT Harness is rated for persons up to 150kg, 23st, 330lbs

S t a n d a r d c o n v e n t i o n a l h a r n e s s e s a r e o n l y r a t e d t o 1 0 0 k g

The ZT harness does not need to be adjusted t ight ly, contrary to guidance for a convent ional harness. I t wi l l automat ical ly t ighten and adjust to the body in the event of a fa l l .

The ZT harness is inspected in the same manner as a convent ional harness, dai ly before use and every 6 months* An indiv idual t ra ined on inspect ing a convent ional harness should not require addi t ional t ra in ing to inspect a ZT harness.

* T h i s w i l l v a r y o n l o c a l l e g i s l a t i o n

Ful ly machine washable. The harness is washed 70 t imes at 60°C, pr ior to f inal st rength / drop test ing to achieve CE approval .

Optional f lame retardancy, tested and approved when used in conjunct ion wi th f lame retardant coveral ls

BS EN361:2002

The ZT Harness is manufactured in the UK

using the f inest quality materials and components*

* G a r m e n t s v a r y u p o n c u s t o m e r r e q u i r e m e n t s

Manufactured utilizing the same technology as used in the production of car air bags

ZT Harness Types

S t a n d a r d H a r n e s s F r o n t A t t a c h m e n t

D u a l H a r n e s s F r o n t & R e a r

U n i v e r s a l H a r n e s s F r o n t , R e a r & W o r k

P o s i t i o n i n g

Garment options

W o r k w e a r

H e a v y d u t y

H i g h v i s i b i l i t y

H i g h v i s i b i l i t y

F l a m e R e t a r d a n t A n t i - S t a t i c

E x t r e m e w e a t h e r

U n d e r g a r m e n t

F i r e S e r v i c e

Companies who have adopted the ZT Harness

What does ZT stand for?

Zero Trauma

www.ztsafety.com