UKC

For work at height, and less so for my own route cleaning/climbing I need a better personal fall protecting lanyard.

My priorities:

1. Sharp (steel) edges. Protection from cutting in a swinging fall.
2. Length. needs to be around 2-3 m long
3. Absorption. Potential for factor 1.5 ish fall.
4. Self rescue. Would be good if setup could assist climbing back up over edge.
5. Size. The simpler and more compact the better

I was thinking something like a Screamer mallioned onto a GriGri 1 on some 11mm dynamic rope with a steel krab at the end, with a small bag for storage.

What would you/do you use? Thanks!

something like a Petzl Grillon and use it to lower (position) yourself - not to fall on?

Anchors will sometimes be on the ground + close to the edge.

Someone needs to say it, may as well be me.

For work at height it needs to be planned, risk assessed, supervised and carried out by someone competent (by way of training and experience) to do so.  Your questions suggest that this person isn't you right now.  There also needs to be a rescue plan in place beyond allowing for self-rescue - facilitating a prompt self-rescue is good, but it's not enough.

For your own route cleaning/climbing or a bit of DiY at home by all means knock yourself out, but work is different.

Ah, i meant working at height. Not working for a company for money at height. So I will still need to choose my own system. Hence my asking here.

I'm aware of the various systems petzl offers etc but was hoping that someone on ukc would have a novel idea / combination of products that they use themselves. 

I saw this product:

https://www.safetyliftingear.com/products/shock-absorbing-lanyard-with-kara...

but the shock absorber is quite large (see the video) and the rope is not dynamic. 

Does anyone know who makes the smallest shock absorber (Yates?) and who makes dynamic rope lanyards with sewn loop ends?

Thanks again.

This is almost exactly what I'm after but the full system is only rated to 680 kg...

https://www.needlesports.com/Catalogue/Climbing/Big-Wall-Aid-Climbing/Daisy...

I doubt your pelvis is though....  why do you think you need more?

You absolutely need the shock absorber - not enough length for a dynamic rope to provide enough shock absorption.

Which isn't working at height?  Erm..  you've lost me.  You mean it's a DiY project?

Otherwise it doesn't matter whether you're working for a company, some other kind of organisation or a individual and it doesn't matter whether you're volunteering or being paid - it's still work.

But even if it is a DiY project, which would mean you're unlikely to land yourself in legal trouble at least, you need to have a proper think about whether you really know what you're doing.  Would you be happy to just solo it?  No?  In that case it's probably a bit too likely that you're going to fall to be working in fall-arrest (as opposed to finding a way to prevent a fall).  We're not talking sport climbing here, falling off is not ok.

Ok, leaving this aside for a mo..

You've skipped several stages of the planning/risk assessment process and just assumed that you'll be working in fall arrest, exposed to a significant potential fall, in which the lanyard you're relying on is likely to be loaded over a sharp edge.  These are all things that you should be looking to eliminate - especially that last one which is a real killer.  (Even if that isn't particularly cheap/convenient.)

Is the thing you're planning to do really necessary?  Is there a way to achieve the same objective without getting access to whatever you're trying to gain access to?  Use a different gizmo, install it somewhere else, etc.

Assuming not then..  can you put scaffolding up?  Can you hire a MEWP?

Assuming not then.. can you use work restraint or work positioning instead of fall arrest?  If the anchors you've mentioned are not suitable, can you install more suitable anchors, either temporary or permanent?

These are all rhetorical questions btw - I don't need or want answers to them, they're the questions you should be asking yourself.  Before you start shopping for random bits of gear and/or asking the internet for creative suggestions.

But speaking of shopping for gear, you won't find an industrial fall-arrest lanyard made with a dynamic rope because that's what the shock absorber is for.  (Also, even with good edge protection, you're unlikely to find anyone with much sense committing themselves to a textile rope or sling loaded over a sharp steel edge.)