EN 361 Explained
FALL PROTECTION

 

EN 361:2002: Personal protective equipment against falls from height
- Full body harnesses

When you work at a great height, one thing is crucial: trust that you will get back down safely. At Scandia Gear, we therefore rely on 3M fall protection. With our products, we meet the need for safety solutions and personal protective equipment for working at great heights with reliable fall protection products. The EN 361 standard is an important factor in this.

To ensure that the wearer is safely suspended after a fall, every safety harness must be equipped with adjustable chest, shoulder, and leg straps that are at least 40 mm wide and must have an attachment eyelet located directly over the wearer’s centre of gravity.

In accordance with EN 361, a safety harness can be integrated into clothing and PPE (e.g., HV vests) provided that the harness can be inspected without being damaged or damaging the clothing or PPE in which it is a part. To make inspection easier, the harness' seams and' straps must be different colours.

The test methods include:

Dynamic Performance
Harnesses are subject to a performance test in which a shock load is applied. In addition, the test will indicate the harness’ response during use, specifically the angle at which the wearer will be held in the event of a fall.

Static Strength
Products’ tensile tests are based on a factor of safety relative to the expected during use. Tensile forces are usually applied and held for at least 3 minutes to ensure the breaking strength of the product exceeds the force specified by the standard.

Corrosion Resistance
Metallic components used in fall protection equipment are subjected to a neutral salt spray test to determine whether the product can provide a minimum resistance to environmental corrosion (e.g., rust). Products are subjected to exposure and examined thereafter for signs of rust and to assess whether each device can continue to function properly.

If all these tests are assessed positively, the safety harnesses receive the standard EN 361. Download our Feature Fact downloadsheet with more information on how to put on our Full Body Harnesses.

Find out more about our norms and standards HERE.