Quality in the manufacturing and materials of netting is a major factor in the selection process. Many nets sup- plied by U.S. based companies are imported from China or India where the manufacturing process is driven by supplying an inexpensive product in mass quantities. Even nets that appear adequate may have quality issues lurking under the surface that are not easily identifiable by the untrained eye. One example is a deterioration con- dition caused when an overseas supplier manufactures a net with a linked polymer that begins to deteriorate al- most immediately. The condition is referred to as “wooly bear” syndrome, due to its appearance. This can dramati- cally affect the longevity and safety of the products. Although in the construction industry nets are often rented for a project, S&R Enterprises decided to purchase the nets from Pucuda in anticipation of ad- ditional future projects. For this reason, it was even more important the net and system was manufactured with the highest quality materials and with longevity in mind.
Leading Edge building safety netting
Bukis says there were installation challenges to overcome as well., as one of the towers was a sloping triangle that progressively narrowed as it went up. “When our team was installing the nets, they had a ton of questions about installing the netting correctly,” says Bukis. “So, we asked John to come to the site.” “He is not afraid to come out and go up in a structure and actually look at the installation,” adds Bukis, noting that this was also during the COVID-19 pandemic. “Just him being here and knowing that he’s the expert and him confirming that the installation was correct alleviated all their concerns. So, it was definitely beneficial that he was willing to come out and do that.” With netting systems, the most well-designed and manufactured sys- tems are those that go unnoticed and can be taken for granted. It is only when someone, or something falls and causes damage or injury to people or property and it makes the evening news that netting systems take center stage. With so much at stake, contractors and building owners would be well served to seek out expert advice from netting system experts to avoid installing defective products that fall below the safety standards. “It all comes down to safety,” explains Bukis. “If something or some- one happens to fall, you are going to want the best nets available. I feel much more comfortable with a higher quality product, because the goal is, we don’t ever want any of our people hurt.”
Cape Canaveral Launch Towers Pucuda is also involved in a unique project at the Kennedy Space Center at the Air Force station at Cape Canaveral, supplying netting systems for a structural steel project to construct a launch tower and a lightning strike tower. “On a portion of this particular project, we are building two towers and the primary function of the netting is to catch debris,” explains Alan Bukis of S&R Enterprises, the on-site project manager for the structural steel construction company. “So, if somebody is working up on level 400 and accidentally drops something, the debris netting will catch it before it goes to the ground and potentially hurts somebody.” In addition, the nets are technically rated for fall protection even though it is not the intended use. In addition to the netting, workers are expected to tie off using a fully body harness whenever they are six feet above the floor. These towers represent protection for the first new build of a Launch Pad in several decades. Therefore, it was important for S&R to inter- view several netting manufactures. “Overall, [Pucuda – Leading Edge] had the best presentation as far as we were concerned,” says Bukis. “John Rexroad definitely knows the netting industry inside and out, and it was very evident in our initial discussions.” One important aspect of the presentation was a review of samples of the netting, brought in by two of the three companies. “By appearance alone, you could see there was a higher quality netting with Pucuda – Leading Edge,” says Bukis. “The other company brought a sample and it was a considerable difference.
JEFF ELLIOTT is a Torrance, Calif.-based technical writer. He has researched and written about industrial technologies and issues for the past 15 years.
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october 2020
csengineermag.com
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