As part of 3M Fall Protections continued commitment to producing high quality safety and personal protective equipment, we conduct periodic testing of our products. Recent testing of specific DBI-SALA® Delta™ & Exofit XP™ Arc Flash harnesses have returned negative test results on some units. The Arc Flash Standard (ASTM F887) requires that all arc flash rated harnesses be subjected to an Arc Flash followed by a successful dynamic drop test. It should be noted that there is variability in Arc Flash testing of webbing based products. Although not fully understood, it can stem from several contributing factors including positioning, webbing gap to the test torso, environmental elements, arc path, input energy and other possible sources.
Issue #1 3M™ Fall Protection Specific DBI-SALA® Delta™ & Exofit XP™ Arc Flash Harnesses withan Integrated 18 in. Nylon D-Ring Extension
A recent review ofthe test results and subsequent retesting of specific DBI-SALA® Delta™ & Exofit XP™ Arc Flash harnesses that utilize an integrated 18 in. Nylon D-Ring Extensionhave found inconsistent performance results. As such,we are issuing a stop use noticeto all customers that have these harnesses which include an attached nylon d-ring extension.
We are not aware of any accidents or injuries related to this condition. We have not received any customer complaints regarding this but have identified it through an internal review.
Users/Owners: Immediately inspect your harness to determine if it is one of the affected part numbers. The harness part number can be found on the harness label. Although these harnesses will safely arrest a fall, you should not use these harnesses in an environment or application where there is a potential for an arc flash event. We are not aware of any arc flash related injuries in the field, but the potential exists for insufficient performance after an arc flash event.
If you have identified that you have an affected harness, please contact 3M Customer Service at1-833-638-2697 or at 3musfpserviceaction@mmm.comand provide us with contact information and we will have someone contact you to discuss your options. We are working to develop a retrofit D-Ring Extension to address the issue including re-certification to the product under the ANSI/ASTM Arc Flash standard. We anticipate that we will be able to provide this solution to you free of charge by June 2020.
Once available, a copy of the retrofit Instruction for Use (IFU) can be found at http://go.3M.com/specific-Delta-and-XP0-Arc-Flash-harnesses.
Issue #2 Certain 3M™ Fall Protection CustomDBI-SALA® Delta™ & Exofit XP™ Arc Flash Harnesses
Due to the very low volumes associated with these SKUs, we have chosen not to invest in the testing required to re-validate conformity to the ASTM F887 arc flash standard for the harnesses identified. As such, we have decided to discontinue offering these products to the market.
Most of these products were developed many years ago and we have not been able to establish a clear link to past test reports validating conformity to ASTM F887. Out of an abundance of caution, we are requesting that end users return these harnesses to us and we will provide a cash rebate, provided the harnesses pass a pre-use inspection as per our Instruction for Use.
We are not aware of any accidents or injuries related to this condition. We have not received any customer complaints regarding any of these units but have identified this situation through an internal review.
Users/Owners: Immediately inspect your harness to determine if it is one of the affected part numbers. The harness part number can be found on the harness label. You should not use these harnesses in an environment or application where there is a potential for an arc flash event. We are not aware of any arc flash related injuries in the field, but the potential exists for insufficient performance after an arc flash event.
If you have identified that you have an affected harness, please contact 3M Customer Service at 1-833-638-2697 or at 3musfpserviceaction@mmm.comand provide us with contact information and we will arrange for the product return and cash rebate.
A copy of this notice can be found at http://go.3M.com/specific-Delta-and-XP0-Arc-Flash-harnesses.Distributors: Please contact our Customer Service department at 1-833-638-2697 or at 3musfpserviceaction@mmm.comto obtain a listing of all affected harnesses sold to you. The affected part numbers are shown above.If you have any of the affected harnesses in stock, you should return them to 3M Fall Protection for credit.
Please immediately forward this Stop Use to any of your customers/users who have purchased affected product from you with a request that they read and comply with this Notice.
3M remains committed to providing quality products and services to our customers. We apologize for any inconvenience that this situation may cause to you or your customers. We appreciate your continued support of 3M Fall Protection products and services.3M Fall Protection
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