Help with choosing safety harnesses & restraint systems
Selection guide
The lanyard is the connecting element that links the harness to the anchor point, via cable, webbing or rope, depending on the use. Without an integrated energy absorber, it must never be used for fall arrest in the event of a free fall. This is why it is used for work positioning or restraint, where the risk of a fall is excluded by design. Choosing your lanyard therefore depends on the length required, the material, and the connectors at the end of the lanyard, suited to the intended anchor point. In this guide, find out how to choose the lanyard best suited to your work!
A brief reminder about the standards
EN 354:
Connecting lanyard or component of a restraint system; they make it possible to limit a user's range of movement.
Breaking strength > 22 kN.
EN 358:
A work positioning lanyard allows a user to hold themselves in tension (or in suspension) at a workstation, freeing their hands.
Breaking strength > 15 kN.
Use: Lanyards must allow the user to move around with maximum safety while causing minimum discomfort:
• A restraint lanyard (EN 354) is used exclusively to prevent a user from reaching an area where there is a risk of falling. Forked lanyards are designed to be used in the same way but during movement with re-anchoring.
• A work positioning lanyard may be used when there is no risk of a fall; otherwise it must be combined with a fall arrest system suited to the work situation.
REMINDER: A lanyard without an energy absorber must not be used as a fall arrest system.
What to choose?
Whatever the type of lanyard, performance is identical, so it is above all a personal choice, which must nevertheless be made according to the intensity of use. When choosing the product, the importance of the connectors must be carefully taken into account.
Twisted rope 12 mm
For occasional and/or short-duration use
Webbing 30 mm
For occasional and/or short-duration use
Braided rope 12 mm
For regular and/or long-duration use
Work positioning lanyards
Depending on your needs, several attachment points can make it possible to work more efficiently at height as well as to tire less, particularly with the two lateral points. In this example, without these points, the worker has only one hand available, in addition to tiring much more quickly and being far less comfortably positioned.
Lanyard with an adjustment buckle, used when the operator's position remains the same throughout the work to be carried out.
Lanyard with a progressive adjustment system, used when the operator's position needs to be adjusted frequently for the work to be carried out.
To ensure your lanyard performs well, remember to protect it with a protective sleeve, as found on some of our models.
With this guide, you now have everything you need to correctly choose the lanyard you need to work at height with comfort and safety on a daily basis. Choose KRATOS SAFETY today.
