New International Standard

For Rope Access use on Wind Turbines from The Industrial Rope Access Trade Association IRATA International

 

Following its highly successful publishing of the International Code of Practice for the Use of Rope Access methods (ICOP) in early 2010, IRATA International convened a new International Working Group that has met in Amsterdam and has brought this new guidance document to publication in 2011.

It is the first International Standard covering this already highly successful technique and its obvious excellent applications in the Wind Energy market.

It is aimed at giving clear guidance to Rope Access operators, trainers, specifiers, turbine manufacturers, owners and all those who use Rope Access on these structures.

As well as the International Working Group representation from the Association, Renewable Associations including Renewables UK and operators have been included to enable the whole industry to have input.

Some of the areas that the Guidance will cover include:

•    Specific Hazards and Risk Assessments
•    Selection of Anchorages
•    Typical Access tasks and methods using Rope Access to access Blades. Hub etc
•    Rescue and Evacuation
•    Rescue and Access Rigging Methods
•    Team sizes and levels of Supervision
•    Training requirements
•    Working with non rope access operatives

Graham Burnett IP Chair of IRATA International and Working Group member commented after the completion of this guidance by the working group. “Rope Access has been used safely, cost effectively and successfully since the introduction of the very first of the mass-produced turbines in the 1980s. The specific guidance on the use of Rope Access techniques has come of age.  Our Association has recognised its international responsibility to pull together the expert advice on the subject for the benefit of all those in this sector.”

The ICOP can be downloaded from IRATA : http://www.irata.org/publications.htm and this Wind Turbine guidance forms a significant new Annex to this document and is available as a download.