On July 20, 2015, the MTE issued Technical Note No. 146 informing that the products whose Certificate of Approval (CA) were not renewed or that were replaced by another product remain valid as long as they were purchased before the expiration date of the Certificate Approval (CA). For this, the user must respect the validity of the product disclosed by the manufacturer.
Therefore, we inform you that for Hércules fall protection products, the validity period is indefinite, following the recommendations below for determining obsolescence.
For harnesses and lanyards:
Service life is determined by routine inspections that must be performed by a trained person before each use, following the guidelines below. If any of the following items are detected on the harness or lanyard, the product must be discarded immediately:
1. Laces: signs of tearing, perforation, abrasion or cut;
2. Seams: rupture;
3. Metal components: deformations, locking, breaking, cracks or corrosion;
4. Impact indicator: broken;
5. Shock absorber: broken.
In addition to the factors described above, in case of retention of a fall, the equipment must be immediately discarded, even if in perfect condition.
For fall arrest devices:
Following the same guidelines described for harnesses and lanyards, the service life is determined by routine inspections that must be performed by a trained person before each use, following the guidelines described below. Be aware, if any of the items below are detected on the fall arrest device, the product must be discarded immediately:
1. Loop: signs of tearing, perforation, abrasion, or cut;
2. Seams: tearing;
3. Metal components: deformations, locking, breaking, cracks or corrosion;
4. Spring: rupture;
5. Safety brake: breakage;
6. Cable: broken wire or distortion;
7. Impact indicator: broken;
8. Box: compromised seal.
The tip about disposal in case of fall arrest is also valid for fall arrest devices, and the equipment must be immediately discarded or, for retractable models, sent to technical assistance, even if in perfect condition.
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