What is the recommended action if a piece of safety equipment is damaged?

What is the recommended action if a piece of safety equipment is damaged?

• A. Count rigging gear before and after lifts, tag damaged items, and replace promptly
• B. Continue using damaged equipment until failure
• C. Hide damaged equipment
• D. Discard all equipment

Answer: (A)

Safely handling damaged equipment starts with clear identification, isolation, and communication. Before a lift, you count all rigging gear to establish a known inventory and catch anything missing or out of place. After the lift, you recount again to confirm everything is accounted for and to spot any gear that may have been damaged during the operation. Damaged items are tagged so everyone can see they are out of service and must not be used. Replacing such gear promptly keeps the toolbox ready for safe use and reduces the chance of a failure during the next lift. Continuing to use damaged gear, hiding it, or discarding all equipment ignores the essential steps of identification, notification, and replacement, and each of those other options increases the risk of an accident or equipment failure.

Safely handling damaged equipment starts with clear identification, isolation, and communication. Before a lift, you count all rigging gear to establish a known inventory and catch anything missing or out of place. After the lift, you recount again to confirm everything is accounted for and to spot any gear that may have been damaged during the operation. Damaged items are tagged so everyone can see they are out of service and must not be used. Replacing such gear promptly keeps the toolbox ready for safe use and reduces the chance of a failure during the next lift.

Continuing to use damaged gear, hiding it, or discarding all equipment ignores the essential steps of identification, notification, and replacement, and each of those other options increases the risk of an accident or equipment failure.