Preliminary Note; General Warning - Tractel stopcable EN353-1 Installations-, Gebrauchs- Und Wartungsanleitung

Preliminary note:

All instructions from this manual refer to a vertical lifeline
made up of a fixed installation and an individual mobile
fall-arrest device. All instructions that make reference
to "PPE" (Personal Protective Equipment) refer to PPE
against falls from height.

1. General warning

1. The purpose of the stopcable™ lifeline function is to
manage serious risks of people falling. Therefore, it
is essential for the safety of installation and using the
equipment, and for its efficiency, to read this manual
and strictly adhere to the instructions in it, before and
during installation and when using the lifeline.
2. This manual should be delivered to the lifeline
management user and remain available to any user
and installer. Additional copies may be supplied by
Tractel SAS upon request.
3. Use of the stopcable™ lifeline requires attachment
to a complete fall-arrest harness. The system should
establish a system which prevents or stops any falls
from height under conditions which comply with the
applicable safety regulations and standards.
4. The information panel, to be set up at each of the
lifeline's access points, must be kept fully legible
throughout the duration of use of the lifeline. Copies
may be supplied by Tractel SAS upon request.
5. Each operator using a stopcable™ lifeline must meet
the physical and professional ability requirements for
working at heights. They must have received, under
risk-free conditions, suitable prior training in theory
and practice, involving PPE in accordance with
safety requirements. This training should include
comprehensive information on the chapters of this
manual concerning the use of this device.
6. As each lifeline system is made for a specific
situation, any installation of a stopcable™ lifeline
must be preceded by a specific technical study
of its installation, to be performed by a qualified
technician, including the necessary calculations for
the installation's and this manual's specifications.
This study must take into account the configuration of
the set up site and verify, in particular, the mechanical
suitability and strength of the structure to which the
stopcable™ lifeline must be secured. It must be
entered into a usable technical file by the installer.
7. Installation of the lifeline should be carried out using
appropriate means, under safety conditions which
completely control any risk of falls for the installer,
due to site conditions.
8. The operation, maintenance and management of
the stopcable™ lifeline should be the responsibility
of technicians who know the applicable safety
regulations and standards for this type of hardware
and for the equipment associated with it. Each user
must have read and understood this manual. The
first implementation must be checked by a qualified
technician to check that the installation complies with
the preliminary study file and this manual.
9. The user of the lifeline should check and ensure the
continual compliance of this lifeline, and that of the
PPE associated with it, in accordance with the safety
requirements and with the applicable rules and
standards in the country of use. They must ensure
the compatibility of the associated PPE, with each
other and with the lifeline.
10. The lifeline and the equipment associated with
it should never be used if they are not clearly in
good condition. In case of a visual observation of a
defect, it is imperative to repair the defect observed
before any further use. Periodic inspection of the
stopcable™ lifeline and its associated PPE must
be organised at least once a year as indicated in
paragraph 14, under the guidance of a qualified
operator who is trained for this purpose. This training
can be provided by Tractel S.A.S. This inspection
must be carried out in accordance with Directive
89/656/EEC and this manual's instructions.
11. Before each session of use, the user must carry
out a visual inspection of the lifeline to ensure it is
in good working order, that the associated PPE is
as well, that they are compatible and that they are
properly installed and connected.
12. The lifeline should only be used for protection
against people falling, in accordace with this
manual's instructions. No other use is permitted. In
particular, it should never be used as a suspension
system. It should never be used by more than one
operator at a time and it should never be subjected
to a force greater than that which is indicated in this
manual.
13. It is prohibited to repair or modify the parts of
stopcable™ lifeline or to install parts which were
not supplied or recommended by Tractel SAS.
Dismantling the stopcable™ lifeline carries serious
risk of injury or property damage (spring effect).
This dismantling should be reserved exclusively for
a technician fully conversant with the risks of taut
cable dismantling.
14. Tractel SAS does not accept any responsibility for
the installation of stopcable™ lifelines carried out
outside of its instruction.
15. When any point of a stopcable™ lifeline has been
subjected to stress by an operator falling, the entire
lifeline, especially the anchors, seals and anchoring
points located within the fall zone, as well as
personal protective equipment affected by the fall,
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