Typical Equipment
Typical equipment includes:
Climbing helmet, a piece of safety equipment that primarily protects the skull against falling debris. As rope access is an industrial application, helmets are mandatory as they would be on a construction site. A head injury causing the victim to become unconscious introduces the risk of Orthostatic hypotension through the restriction of blood flow caused by the victim’s own unsupported weight in the harness.
Sit harness, consisting of a waist belt and two leg loops which are normally connected in the front of the hips through a permanent webbing loop.
Chest harness, worn around the shoulders, usually with a sit harness so as to provide an additional attachment point farther up the body. This attachment point allows for better balance in some situations, such as when carrying a heavy pack (as the centre of mass is below the connection to the rope) and when the person in the harness may be unable to maintain an upright position (due to injury or other influences).
Full-body harness, the combination of a sit harness and a chest harness which are permanently or semi-permanently connected to each other. This kind of harness normally offers a wide range of attachment points. It is most commonly used in industrial/rescue situations.
Ascender, a mechanical device used for ascending on a rope. Ascenders offer similar functionality to friction knots, but are faster, safer and easier to use.
Safety back-up device, a device that provides a redundancy should an ascender, descender, working rope or anchor fail. It is attached to the safety (second rope) and designed to be kept as high as possible to reduce the distance fallen in the event of a fall. The safety devices usually relies on friction transferred to the safety rope by means of a cam.
All devices are connected back to the harness by means of a lanyard, otherwise known as a cow's tail, and fastened to the lanyard by a screwgate carabiner.
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