On occasions where staff are working in environments where there is the potential to fall a dangerous distance, it is essential that they are given some form of protection in order to arrest their descent.  In situations where they are alone, or where other staff nearby may be unable to assist them, having a self retracting lifeline that will get them back to safety is necessary so that in the event of an accident of some sort, the person is able to return to safety without assistance.

While a conventional lifeline is simply a static rope tied onto the person who needs it, and is then connected to an anchor point at the top of the area being worked on, a self retracting lifeline is contained within a spool, so that in the event of an accident, the user will only fall a short distance.

There are a number of factors to consider when selecting the right self retracting lifeline to protect the lives of your workers or yourself, and these include the strength of the cable, the braking system that is used, the actual length of the cable or rope, and also, the ease with which the system can be set up and used.

The strength of the cable used in a self retracting lifeline needs to be sufficient to support the user and the additional force of deceleration that is applied to them when they fall and stop.  This figure will depend on the distance that a person actually falls, but in most cases, a figure of several times the weight of the individual is required – although as stated above, systems with a lower braking power will need less because less force is applied to the rope.  In addition to the strength of the cable, it is also impo