Navigating the new ANSI Tower Standards: What you need to know

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration recorded 8 communications tower fatalities in 2015, 12 in 2014, and 13 the year before.[1] While decreasing, this is an unfortunate statistic considering the numerous industry standards available for adoption that exist to help prevent needless injuries, and even death, from occurring.  

Industry standards are wonderful creations because they bring uniformity to processes while taking much of the guesswork out. This applies to just about everything in the public safety sector, from erecting a communications tower, to building a public safety answering point, to implementing a computer aided dispatch system. 

Until January 1, 2017, ANSI/TIA 1019-A, Installation, Alteration, and Maintenance of Antenna Supporting Structures and Antenna, was the tower standard with a broad scope of tower-related topics appealing to many different disciplines. To summarize the standard:

• It covered everything from soup to nuts
• It targeted two very disparate groups: tower designers/engineers and tower climbers/installers. While the standard contained a lot of good and relevant information for these groups, it also contained a lot of information that many found irrelevant for their respective skillsets.
• As a result, it was a challenge to wade through the document to find information that actually mattered to them.

In a joint effort, TIA and ASSE tackled TIA 1019-A, splitting the standard into two distinct pieces, making navigation much simpler.

A change for the better

The split of TIA 1019-A is good for any entity that has anything to do with tower installation, maintenance, or demolition. Now the standards have a very specific orientation, which makes them much easier to navigate and comprehend.

ANSI/TIA-322 v. ANSI/ASSE A10.48 - the split breakdown

And, as TIA has noted, the standards both contain standardized terminology to “facilitate and improve communications”[2] between those designing the towers and those building them. Both standards went into effect on January 1, 2017.

What you need to know about ANSI/TIA 322

ANSI/TIA 322,  Loading Criteria, Analysis, and Design Related to the Installation, Alteration and Maintenance of Communiations Structures, revises TIA 1019-A, originally published in 2012. Not much has changed concerning the information pertinent to the structural engineer:

• The standard tells the structural engineer how to design a safe tower.
• It focuses on supporting infrastructure used during tower construction and maintenance, such as cranes, gin poles, lifting blocks, and attached rigging systems.
• Why is this important? If the construction and wind loads associated with such infrastructure exceed thresholds, the tower could buckle, or worse, collapse. This of course could lead to unfortunate outcomes ranging from construction delays, to additional costs being incurred to remediate the damage, to lawsuits being filed, to the absolute worst-case scenario – a tower worker being injured or killed.  

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT ANSI/ASSE A10.48

As ANSI/TIA-322 is the standard for engineers, tower workers now have their own standard in ANSI/ASSE A10.48. This is a good thing because tower safety is vitally important. Despite excellent efforts by the industry, tower safety remains a work in progress.

ANSI/ASSE A10.48 (Criteria for Safety Practices with the Construction, Demolition, Modification and Maintenance of Communication Structures):

• provides safe practices and training for tower workers.
• addresses pre-job planning, including risk assessments and rescue plans; job site conditions; fall protection; radio frequency and electromagnetic energy exposure; hoists and lifting accessories; and training programs.  All vitality important to personnel’s wellbeing.

Kudos to TIA and ASSE for recognizing the magnitude of the scope of the original standard, and creating standards specifically for the engineers and contractors. This will foster greater clarity and enhance comprehension, in turn resulting in a more efficient and effective application of each standard for the safety of all involved.

It is worth mentioning that TIA-222, Structural Standard for Antenna Supporting Structures and Antennas, Revision G, is in the process of revised, with “significant changes” forthcoming. This standard establishes structural design and fabrication requirements for antenna supporting structures, including mounts, components, and foundations. TIA described the revision of TIA-222-G to 222-H as “[c]ontinuing the evolution and improvement process,” and noted the following:

• Emphasis on climbing facilities
• Change to risk categories, exposure, & topography for structural loading
• Updated wind, ice and seismic provisions (ASCE and ATC web site)
• New structural engineering research (AISC)
• Reference to TIA-322 (existing 1019A), rigging plans and PMI’s
• Mount classification and safety requirements
• Enhanced inspection criteria
• Feedback from industry participants[3]

Completion is expected in the first half of 2017.

Developed through a consensus process established by ANSI, these voluntary standards can be easily navigated, and, when adopted, can ensure the creation of stable structures[4] and the safety of personnel. Both engineers and contractor personnel are encouraged to familiarize themselves with these standards and put them into practice.

References

[1] https://www.osha.gov/doc/topics/communicationtower/index.html

[2] Construction Planning and Implementation Using ANSI/TIA-322 and ANSI/ASSE A10.48. Slide 18 of 43. Related Links at: http://www.tiaonline.org/all-standards/committees/tr-14  

[3] October 24, 2016, TIA/OSHA roundtable presentation. Slides 10 and 11 of 116. Related Links at: http://www.tiaonline.org/all-standards/committees/tr-14

[4] TIA Comment to OSHA on Communications Towers, page 3. http://www.tiaonline.org/search-results-cse?query=322-H.