Expert Rooftop Safety Solutions
in Quebec

The Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety states, “the majority (67%) of falls happen on the same level resulting from slips and trips. The remaining 30% are falls from a height”. One can understand that even a trip while working at height can be tragic, so increasing our responsibility to create safer work areas while at height is good practice.

Regardless of the commercial or industrial rooftop size and layout, keeping fall protection and height safety at the top of one’s mind is a must. Common hazards we come across vary in severity depending on the weather. For example, during winter, skylights are covered with snow, making the skylight much more of a fall risk. Here are a few common fall hazards we come across while reviewing rooftops;

• Lack of a dedicated walkway, or one that takes you near the edge of the roof without any fall protection solutions present.
• Maintenance of RTUs located near the edge of the rooftop.
• Roof hatch systems lack a gate or guardrail to prevent falls when left open during roof maintenance.
• Slippery surfaces can occur year-round, depending on the weather or the material of the rooftops. Some rooftop materials can be quite slippery just from the morning dew.
• High-sloped rooftops that lack a walkway system to level the surface for safe passage.
• Snow not only covers RTUs, skylights, and more, but it also prevents the roof worker from seeing where the roof edge begins. This is especially true when working on rooftops in Quebec, where a lot of snow can accumulate.
• Lack of proper roof access with a fixed access ladder to the rooftop.
• Non-compliant safety solutions previously installed on the rooftop.

Simply put, our roof safety and fall protection solutions are designed and manufactured to meet Quebec’s Occupational Health and Safety Code and Canada’s federal safety standards. We innovate and improve our solutions to ensure a safe working environment beyond mere compliance. When working with Skyline, you are partnering with safety professionals who navigate rooftops and understand how to ensure a safety-first culture while working at height.

What might be custom for your rooftop can be standard for our team. The modular nature of our roof safety railings and roof ladders allows us to create a custom solution using standard stocked modular components.

The process our safety specialists take in providing custom solutions is similar to any of our standard solutions. We start with our discovery stage to best understand your roof layout and current roof safety hazards. Then, we move towards defining the set of solutions that best meet your roof layout and safety needs while creating a design to help identify where hazards will be minimized. Once we have project approval, we finalize the process by understanding the site’s needs for delivery, helping in the delivery and installation process.

When working on a project during the construction phase, we provide temporary safety rails and guardrails to help create a safe perimeter while working near the edge of the building. We can also offer bumplines and warning line systems that warn you of danger ahead and comply with safety standards when used as a warning solution.

Whether you select our galvanized steel or aluminum solutions, you can rest assured that our safety systems are built and designed for Quebec rooftops. The robustness of our solutions also ensures longevity and safety you can count on.

Our safety specialists provide in-person or webinar-based lunch-and-learn sessions covering Quebec height safety requirements and those applicable across Canada, depending on where your projects are located. We focus our safety training around two essential topics: (1) how to ensure safe access to the roof or elevated platforms and (2) how to create a safe environment while working at height or navigating the rooftop.

No set rules or requirements exist for how often you should inspect rooftop safety equipment. When reviewing roof ladders and safety rails, we recommend the following approach to understand when you should inspect the safety system.

• Inspect the fixed ladder before each use.
• Inspect fixed ladders and safety rails periodically, at least annually or after/before each new season.
• Report any defect promptly to building management and tag the item to ensure it is out of service.
• Keep a record of every inspection and the status of the unit.

Inspections may be required more frequently depending on the organization’s requirements and/or the safety equipment. For example there are safety requirements for inspecting PPE equipment like harnesses that can be referred to as fall protection solutions.