With construction sites continuing to pop up all around town, the need for Fall Protection Railing has gone through the roof. According to OSHA, falls account for one-third of all fatalities in the construction industry, making it the leading cause of fatalities in the industry.

Per the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were 291 fatal falls to a lower level in the construction industry in 2013, out of 828 total fatalities. That doesn’t even include all of the falls that weren’t fatal. 

As a construction site and facility protection product provider, we here at Ideal Shield are always looking to improve our products and help make work sites a little safer. To accomplish that, we listened to some input from customers and worked closely with our sister company, Ideal Contracting, to update our standard Fall Protection Railing base plates for a new, easier-to-move, stackable base plate option. 

But why exactly did we update our base plates? We spoke with a project manager and the Director of Purchasing at Ideal Contracting about why improvements were necessary. 

What was the need for the new stacked base plate design?

“One of the key reasons to go to the stacked plates was to reduce the amount of weight our workers must lift.  Prior to the stacked plates, a worker was only allowed to lift 50 lb. max thus having to use two people to carry the 100 lb. plates.  This became extremely beneficial when the rails and plates were down in the mud and needed to be removed.”

What feature of the new design is most beneficial to construction workers?

“One big benefit is the spacers placed on top of the plates along with the hand holes, allowing them to safely lift the plates without pinching their hands and ease of separation and storage.”

What type of projects/applications would these base plates are best used in?

“The new system can be used on any site due to the 200 lb. side force requirements being met by stacking multiple 50 lb. plates on each foot according to the width required (i.e. 6’, 8’, 10’ or gate sections). The locations of use are excavations over 4’ deep where a fall hazard could occur. A roof edge, they can even be used as delineation for pedestrian traffic away from construction zones.”

How would you describe the overall process working with Ideal Shield on this project?

“Working with Ideal Shield was Instrumental in developing what the employees in the field were looking for.  We had key site managers meet with Ideal Shield in our Yard facility and expressed their needs and concerns.  Shield listened to their needs and put together a few mockups.  The mockups were slightly tweaked and our guys were extremely happy along with meeting the safety requirements of a key customer.” 

Teamwork and safety are what we pride ourselves on here at Ideal Group, the parent company of Ideal Shield, Ideal Contracting and the rest of the Ideal Group of Companies. With the new Fall Protection Railing Stackable Base Plates, we were able to work in unison to solve an important safety issue. 

Check out the specs on our new Fall Protection Railing Stackable Base Plates: 

• Features an innovative design with two-separate base plates that stack and lock together
• Each plate is 50 lbs., making it easier for one worker to carry and install  
• Each steel plate is 3/8” thick x 12” wide x 36” long
• When assembled, the base plate height is 1 ½”
• Integrated cut out handles that eliminate pinch points
• Locking pin to prevent rotation
• For construction site and roof fall protection but can also be used for crowd control

Designed with workers in mind, our new Roof Rail Stackable Base Plates will improve construction sites while making the construction workers lives a little easier.

For more information on our Fall Protection Railing or either our Standard or Stackable Base Plates, please contact us today at Ideal Shield!