Can roof safety mesh provide sufficient protection for your skylight?

Did you know insufficient skylight protection is one of the major causes of injury or death in Australia, resulting from falls from height? Installing skylight mesh to safeguard against falls is not enough as it can lead to risky situations for those working at height.

What is skylight (roofing) safety mesh?

Skylight (roofing) safety mesh

Skylight (roofing) safety mesh is a thin wire mesh, installed underneath skylights and roof sheeting during the construction of buildings to ensure the safety of workers installing sheets or plant equipment on the roof.

What are skylight protectors?

Skylight protector

Skylight protectors from SAYFA are made from aluminium, and designed to prevent accidental falls of workers through skylights and other weak spots on the roof. Tested to Australian Standards to meet compliance requirements, skylight protectors serve the same purpose as safety mesh but deliver the assurance of protection backed by ongoing maintenance, inspection checks and certification.

Why is skylight (roofing) safety mesh not sufficient for worker safety?

Typically installed during the construction phase, skylight (roofing) safety mesh can become a less-than-sufficient solution when it comes to safeguarding workers against falls through skylights. The reasons are many:

Wrong installation

If the roofing safety mesh is installed incorrectly, checking its stability in future may not be possible once roofing sheets and skylights have been installed over it. This makes the mesh system vulnerable to failure, leading to unintended but dangerous consequences for anyone working on the roof.

Corrosion

The typical skylight mesh features a bare minimum anti-corrosion coating (35gsm zinc coating). When exposed to temperature fluctuations, condensation and other environmental conditions, the mesh can potentially start to corrode after a while, weakening the protective structure and risking the lives of workers by not being able to stop a fall.

Lack of mandatory maintenance checks

In the absence of regulatory oversight, which would require the roof safety mesh to be inspected by a competent person during or post installation, there’s no way to check incorrect installation, corrosion or other issues that could weaken the system, risking fall accidents.

Skylight protectors

By choosing SAYFA skylight (roofing) safety mesh with its strong aluminium build and excellent corrosion resistance, builders can ensure protection for their personnel working on roofs. Annual inspections on the skylight protectors also provide the additional assurance that any safety issues will be detected and resolved immediately.

Architecture & Design Team

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