Positioning devices must be anchored to withstand at least what capacity?

Positioning devices must be anchored to withstand at least what capacity?

• A. Twice the potential impact load of an employee's fall or 3,000 pounds, whichever is greater
• B. 3,000 pounds only
• C. Twice the potential impact load only
• D. 1,000 pounds or greater, whichever is less

Answer: (A)

The key idea is how strong an anchor for a positioning device must be to safely absorb the forces from a fall. The standard requires that positioning device anchor points be able to support at least twice the potential impact load of a fall, or 3,000 pounds, whichever is greater. This means there’s a built-in safety margin: for higher fall energies, the anchor must be stronger (2 × the potential impact load), and for lower energies, there’s a firm minimum of 3,000 pounds to prevent under-strength anchors. For example, if the potential impact load is 2,500 pounds, twice that is 5,000 pounds, so the anchor must handle 5,000 pounds (which is greater than 3,000). If the potential impact load is 1,800 pounds, twice is 3,600 pounds, so the anchor must handle 3,600 pounds. If it’s 1,200 pounds, twice is 2,400 pounds, but the minimum of 3,000 pounds applies, so the anchor must still withstand 3,000 pounds. That’s why stating “twice the potential impact load or 3,000 pounds, whichever is greater” is the correct approach. The other options would either ignore the minimum threshold or fail to scale with higher fall energies.

The key idea is how strong an anchor for a positioning device must be to safely absorb the forces from a fall. The standard requires that positioning device anchor points be able to support at least twice the potential impact load of a fall, or 3,000 pounds, whichever is greater. This means there’s a built-in safety margin: for higher fall energies, the anchor must be stronger (2 × the potential impact load), and for lower energies, there’s a firm minimum of 3,000 pounds to prevent under-strength anchors.

For example, if the potential impact load is 2,500 pounds, twice that is 5,000 pounds, so the anchor must handle 5,000 pounds (which is greater than 3,000). If the potential impact load is 1,800 pounds, twice is 3,600 pounds, so the anchor must handle 3,600 pounds. If it’s 1,200 pounds, twice is 2,400 pounds, but the minimum of 3,000 pounds applies, so the anchor must still withstand 3,000 pounds.

That’s why stating “twice the potential impact load or 3,000 pounds, whichever is greater” is the correct approach. The other options would either ignore the minimum threshold or fail to scale with higher fall energies.