Height Safety Systems & EN795 Anchor Testing

Every height safety system must be inspected and kept certified under the Work at Height Regulations 2005. Inspection is commonly required every 12 months, dropping to 6 months in high-risk environments, and a system must also be retested after any structural change, impact load, repair, or modification. We manage it all, so a missed date never leaves you uncertified.

We inspect and recertify the full range of lifelines, rail systems, anchor devices, harnesses, lanyards, and fall arrest equipment on your site to keep disruption to a minimum, or at our workshop, where that suits you better. Where we find wear, corrosion or damage, we tell you plainly what needs attention and what it will cost before any work goes ahead.

The right system depends on the work and the hazard.

For example, a fall arrest system stops a fall after it happens, which is why it needs energy absorbers and certified anchor points. A fall restraint system goes a step further by preventing the user from reaching the fall hazard at all. A work positioning system supports the worker so they can use both hands, as in rope access.

The lines themselves come in two forms. Horizontal lifelines, whether cable or rail, let a worker move freely along an edge while staying attached. Vertical lifelines, fitted as tracks or cables, protect ladder and tower climbs.

At SWL, we work across all of these, matching the system to the structure and the task so it protects without getting in the way.

EN795 is the European standard for single-user anchor devices that a worker attaches their PPE to, covering fall arrest, restraint, and work positioning. It defines how an anchor must perform, how it is tested, how it is marked and what documentation it carries.

The standard sets out five device types: Type A structural anchors such as eyebolts and welded points fixed to the structure; Type B portable anchors like slings and deadweight units that need no structural modification; Type C horizontal lifeline systems using a tensioned flexible cable; Type D rigid rail systems on roofs, gantries and plant; and Type E deadweight anchors for flat roofs where fixing into the structure is not possible, suitable for restraint rather than arrest unless specifically certified.

To be compliant, an anchor must support a minimum load of 12 kN for fall arrest (which varies by type) and pass static load, dynamic drop, and corrosion resistance testing. It must be marked with the manufacturer, model, year of manufacture and maximum number of users, and supplied with user and installation instructions.

We test and certify anchor devices against these requirements, and recertify them on schedule. The fixings that hold a fixed anchor into the structure are proved separately, by pull testing, which we cover on our Anchor Pull Testing page.

Roof work is where most height safety systems earn their keep, and where the wrong anchor is most exposed. We supply, install and test roof anchor systems and the lifelines that link them, for exposed roof edges, plant access routes and maintenance walkways.

Flat roofs without a fixable structure are covered by deadweight anchors, while structural roofs take fixed or rail systems. We will survey the roof, recommend a system that suits the structure and how it is accessed, and certify it for use once installed.

As an approved installer of the leading lifeline ranges, we design, supply and install permanent height safety systems, both horizontal and vertical. Approved systems include Harken, Sala LadSafe vertical, Tractel Travsafe and Travsmart, the Checkmate Checkline system, and the Soter horizontal fall arrest and restraint system.

We specify the system to the structure and the work it protects, install it to the manufacturer’s standard, and carry out initial proof load testing once it is fitted. From a single ladder line to a full rooftop network, the system goes in correctly the first time and is placed on an inspection schedule from day one.