Investigation of Guardrails for the Protection of Employees from Occupational Hazards

Published

July 1, 1976

Author(s)

S G. Fattal, L E. Cattaneo

Abstract

State-of-the-art studies, together with experimental an analyticl investigations, are conducted to determine structural and non-structural safety requirements for guardrails usde for the protection of employees against occupational hazards. The critical aspects of guardrail safety have been identified through exploratory studies consisting of field surveys of prototypical installations, reviews of existing standards and industrial accident records, and compilation of relevant anthropometric data. These exploratory studies are utilized to establish an experimental program consisting of resistance tests of guardrail componetns, static and dynamic load measurement tests using human subjects and an thropomorphic dummy, and non-structural tests to determine geometric requirements for guardrail safety. Based on these investigagions, a model performance standard and a disign guide for guardrails are proposed.

Citation

NIST Interagency/Internal Report (NISTIR) - 76-1139

Report Number

76-1139

NIST Pub Series

NIST Interagency/Internal Report (NISTIR)

Pub Type

NIST Pubs

Keywords

anthropometric measurements, anthropomorphic dummy, design dynamic loads, guardrails, industrial accidents, occupational hazards, personnel safety, static loads, structural safety

Citation

Fattal, S. and Cattaneo, L. (1976), Investigation of Guardrails for the Protection of Employees from Occupational Hazards, NIST Interagency/Internal Report (NISTIR), National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD (Accessed April 25, 2026)

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