SRLs

Wind Energy Industry Technician SRLs

No one wants to think about falling while on the job. But, sometimes accidents happen. It is up to us to make sure that in the event of a fall there are safety measures in place to ensure that everyone stays as safe as possible. That’s where an SRL comes into play. A Self-Retracting Lifeline, or SRL, is a device that contains a spring-loaded retracting web or cable lanyard wound around an internal drum. It automatically locks and arrests the fall of a worker.

When looking at SRLs it is important to understand the standards that they need to meet. ANSI Z359.14-2012 classifies SRLs into two classes - Class A and Class B. For more information about SRL standards click here for our blog post or here to visit our knowledge base.

There are a few things to look at when picking out an SRL for wind energy work: body worn vs. mounted, leading edge and foot level, and variations.

Body Worn vs. Mounted

Larger SRLs are mounted above the worker, and the lanyard runs down to connect to the user’s dorsal D-ring on their harness. These come in lengths ranging from 8 ft to over 100 ft. The other option is body worn. These are compact devices which connect directly to the user’s harness and are much shorter, generally 6 or 8 ft. To tie-off, the user connects the tether to an anchorage point. You can also get these in twin-leg configuration for 100% tie-off.

Leading Edge & Foot Level

Most SRLs are designed only to be mounted above the user. For cases where this is not possible, specially designed Foot Level or Leading Edge SRLs are required. ANSI classifies these as SRL-LE devices. These incorporate factors to absorb the extra energy associated with foot-level tie off, as well as more robust cables to resist breaking when ran against a leading edge.

Other Variations

Just like with everything in life, there are special SRLs that have been specifically designed for special situations. Other potential options for SRL variations include:

(1) Sealed design for harsh work environments with grease, dust, and moisture.
(2) Rescue Devices, referred to as SRL-R by ANSI, for auto retrieval. These are common on confined space systems.
(3) Tie-Back for when connectors cannot secure to anchorage points.
(4) Arc Flash rated for working in electrical environments.

For more information about SRLs check out our knowledge base or contact one of our Gear Experts®.