Reduction in seismic tie-off requirements for scaffolding at nuclear power plants

This paper reports that scaffolding at nuclear power plants needs to be prevented from impacting adjacent safety-related commodities during seismic events. This can result in stringent scaffolding tie-off requirements that may be difficult to adhere to due to there being insufficient adjacent commodities to which ties may be made. Recently, a detailed reevaluation of scaffolding tie-off requirements was performed. The analyses indicated ties could be eliminated in most areas of the plant, apart from those mandated for slender scaffolds by Federal (OSHA) and State requirements. Tie-offs were still required in some plant areas, those with the highest seismic motions. However, the new tie-off requirements were significantly less than the earlier ones