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Carpentry · Canada

FLHA for roof truss installation

By Safety PaperworkBuilt from provincial OHS law and CCOHS guidance · How we write and check theseUpdated

Provincial OHS law requires hazards to be assessed and controlled before work starts. A field level hazard assessment (FLHA) for roof truss installation is done on site at the start of the shift and again whenever conditions change.

It lists the tasks, hazards and controls, and every worker signs on before starting and signs off at the end of the shift. The main hazards are falling from a roof edge, falling from height, scaffold collapse or fall from scaffold and falling through a floor opening or void.

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FLHA example: roof truss installation

This is a complete FLHA for roof truss installation, with 6 job steps. Open it in the builder to add your site, crew and signatures, change anything, and download a PDF. Or download the free Word template below and fill it in by hand.

Field Level Hazard Assessment (FLHA)
Roof truss installation · Carpentry · Example
Document FLHA-001 · Rev 1

Job steps, hazards and controls

#Job stepHazardsRisk beforeControlsRisk after
1Erect perimeter scaffold or edge protection at roof height before trusses go up
  • Falling from a roof edge
  • Scaffold collapse or fall from scaffold
Critical
  • Do what you can from the ground or from a scaffold at the gutter line, for example pre-assemble parts on the ground. Elimination
  • Install edge protection or guardrails on all open roof edges before work starts. Engineering (guarding)
  • Use a perimeter scaffold with handrails and toe boards along the eaves where practical. Engineering
  • Where guardrails cannot be fitted, use fall restraint on certified roof anchors so workers cannot reach the edge. Engineering
  • Use one safe, controlled access point and keep others off the roof. Administrative
  • Stop roof work in strong wind or rain, and when the roof is wet, icy or covered in dust or frost. Administrative
  • Wear a harness clipped to a rated anchor when using restraint or fall arrest, and soft-soled non-slip boots. PPE
  • Scaffold is built, altered and taken down only by trained workers supervised by a competent worker, on a firm base with sole boards and ties. Engineering
  • Fit guardrails, mid rails and toe boards on every working platform. Engineering
  • Use mobile scaffolds only on firm, level ground with castors locked and outriggers fitted. Never move one with anyone on it. Engineering
  • A competent worker inspects the scaffold before use each shift, after any change and after bad weather, and tags every access point: green safe, yellow caution, red do not use. Administrative
  • Do not overload platforms. Know the rated load and keep material stacks over the frames. Administrative
  • Never remove ties, braces, guardrails or boards. Only the scaffolder alters the scaffold. Administrative
  • Wear a hard hat and safety boots on and around the scaffold. PPE
Medium
2Lift trusses by crane with a qualified rigger and signaller, keeping everyone clear of the load
  • Crane and lifting failure
  • Falling tools and materials
  • Contact with overhead power lines
High
  • Barricade the lift zone and keep everyone out from under the load. Engineering (guarding)
  • Use a crane rated for the load at the radius, set up on firm ground with outrigger pads. Engineering
  • Check slings, chains, shackles and hooks before use. Remove anything damaged or not tagged. Engineering
  • Plan the lift: weight, radius, ground, path and landing area. Use a written lift plan for complex lifts. Administrative
  • Use certified crane operators and trained riggers and signallers, as your province requires. Administrative
  • Barricade and sign the drop zone under overhead work so nobody walks beneath. Engineering (guarding)
  • Fit toe boards, kick plates and mesh screens on scaffolds and edges. Engineering
  • Use catch fans, debris netting or covered walkways where people pass below. Engineering
  • Tether hand tools when working at height. Engineering
  • Keep platforms tidy. Do not stack materials near edges or above toe board height. Administrative
  • Ask the utility to de-energize, move or insulate the lines before work starts. Elimination
  • Use non-conductive (fibreglass) ladders near any power lines. Substitution
  • Mark the safe distance with flags, tape or goal posts and keep all equipment and people outside it. Engineering (guarding)
  • Keep to the provincial limits of approach and contact the utility before working near lines. Administrative
  • Use a dedicated spotter whenever equipment moves or raises anything near lines. Administrative
  • Treat all lines as live. If equipment touches a line, stay in the cab and keep everyone well away. Administrative
Medium
3Fix trusses from a stable platform, not by walking the top plates
  • Falling from height
  • Falling through a floor opening or void
Critical
  • Do the work from the ground where you can, for example pre-assemble on the ground or use extension poles. Elimination
  • Install guardrails or edge protection on all open edges before work starts. Engineering (guarding)
  • Use a scaffold, mobile work platform or aerial work platform instead of working off a ladder. Engineering
  • Where edge protection is not practical, use a fall restraint or fall arrest system on a rated anchor point. Engineering
  • Fall protection plan in place where required. Workers trained in fall protection (Working at Heights training in Ontario). Administrative
  • Have a rescue plan so a worker hanging in a harness can be brought down within minutes. Administrative
  • Wear a full body harness with a shock-absorbing lanyard, clipped on at all times when using fall arrest. PPE
  • Cover every hole and penetration with a fixed, secured cover marked "HOLE" or "DANGER". Engineering (guarding)
  • Put guardrails with toe boards around stairwells, lift shafts, voids and open edges. Engineering (guarding)
  • Install stairs early and fit temporary handrails as soon as they go in. Engineering
  • Never remove a cover or guardrail without approval. Put it back straight away. Administrative
  • Inspect covers and barriers daily and after other trades have been through. Administrative
  • Keep lighting good enough to see openings, especially on lower floors and in the evening. Administrative
  • Use a harness clipped to a rated anchor when working right next to an open void. PPE
Medium
4Install temporary bracing as each truss goes in
  • Structural collapse during alterations
  • Strong wind and storms
High
  • Get an engineer to check before removing any wall, beam, post or bracing that may be load-bearing. Elimination
  • Keep everyone clear of the area under and next to the work. Engineering (guarding)
  • Install temporary props, needles or shoring as designed before removing any support. Engineering
  • Follow the engineer's sequence. Do not change it without approval. Administrative
  • Check props daily. Do not remove them until the permanent support is in and approved. Administrative
  • Wear a hard hat and safety boots. PPE
  • Check the forecast each morning and plan work at height and lifting around the weather. Elimination
  • Tie down or weigh down loose sheets, panels, boards and rubbish at the end of each shift. Engineering
  • Set wind limits for roof work, platforms and cranes, using the manufacturer's limits, and stop when they are reached. Administrative
  • Stop work and get down in lightning. Wait 30 minutes after the last thunder before going back up. Administrative
  • Check scaffold, fencing and edge protection after strong wind before anyone uses them. Administrative
  • Do not carry large sheets on roofs in wind. Administrative
  • Wear a hard hat with a chin strap at height in windy conditions. PPE
Medium
5Fix tie-downs and permanent bracing with nail guns
  • Nail gun injuries
  • Loud noise
  • Eye injuries
High
  • Use a nail gun with a sequential (single shot) trigger, not a contact or bump trigger. Substitution
  • Disconnect the air or battery before clearing jams, adjusting or moving between work areas. Engineering
  • Keep your free hand at least 30 cm from the nailing point. Administrative
  • Never point the gun at anyone or carry it with your finger on the trigger. Administrative
  • Train new users before they use a nail gun, and check for pipes, cables and metal behind the surface. Administrative
  • Use quieter tools and methods, such as cut-to-size materials, low-noise machines and battery tools. Substitution
  • Keep noisy equipment away from work areas, and use screens or distance between the noise and people. Engineering (guarding)
  • Keep tools maintained and use mufflers on compressors and generators. Engineering
  • Limit time on noisy tools and rotate workers. Administrative
  • If you have to shout to be heard 1 metre away, wear hearing protection. Administrative
  • Use tool guards and screens to stop flying particles. Engineering
  • Use dust extraction and water to keep dust out of the air. Engineering
  • Keep others out of the area when cutting, grinding or chipping. Administrative
  • Keep an eye wash station or eye wash bottles on site. Administrative
  • Wear safety glasses at all times, goggles for dust and chemicals, and a face shield for grinding. PPE
Medium
6Clear offcuts and check bracing before handing over to the roofer
  • Poor housekeeping and waste
  • Falling tools and materials
High
  • Order materials to size and send packaging back where you can. Elimination
  • Put waste bins and chutes close to the work. Engineering
  • Clean as you go, and do a full clean up at the end of each day. Administrative
  • Keep exits, stairs and walkways clear at all times. Administrative
  • Stack materials neatly on level ground, away from edges. Administrative
  • Wear gloves when handling waste. PPE
  • Lower materials with a hoist, chute or rope. Never throw or drop anything down. Administrative
  • Wear a hard hat anywhere objects could fall. PPE
  • Falling tools and materials: see step 2 for the full controls Administrative
Medium

PPE

CSA green triangle safety boots (CSA Z195)Full body harness (fall arrest)Hard hat (CSA Z94.1)Safety glasses (CSA Z94.3)Hearing protectionWork glovesHigh-visibility vest (CSA Z96)Sun protection (sunscreen, hat, long sleeves)Safety gogglesFace shield

Plant and equipment

Mobile crane: Provincial crane operator certification, qualified riggerFrame scaffold: Provincial scaffold erector trainingNail gunPlatform ladderHand tools

Permits and plans

Roof access permitFall protection planLift plan

Emergency

Call 911. Add the nearest hospital, the muster point and the first aid attendant for your site.

Sign-off

Supervisor and every worker sign to confirm they have read and understood this FLHA, then sign off at the end of the shift.

Free FLHA template for roof truss installation

Word (.docx) and PDF, Letter landscape, no email needed. Fill in your site details, then print or send it.

Word template (.docx)PDF template

Make yours in 2 minutes

Same document, filled in for your job. Answer a few yes or no questions, the crew signs on the phone, and you send the PDF.

Start this FLHA

Pre-start checklist for roof truss installation

Tick these off before work starts. They come from the hazards, permits and equipment in this job.

The safe sequence of work

  1. Erect perimeter scaffold or edge protection at roof height before trusses go up
  2. Lift trusses by crane with a qualified rigger and signaller, keeping everyone clear of the load
  3. Fix trusses from a stable platform, not by walking the top plates
  4. Install temporary bracing as each truss goes in
  5. Fix tie-downs and permanent bracing with nail guns
  6. Clear offcuts and check bracing before handing over to the roofer

Hazards to watch on roof truss installation

The hazards most specific to this job, and the step where each one comes up.

Step 5Nail gun injuriesA nail gun fires by accident, or a nail goes through the timber or ricochets and hits the user or someone nearby.
Step 2Crane and lifting failureA load falls or swings, or the crane tips, crushing workers under or near the lift.
Step 1Scaffold collapse or fall from scaffoldA scaffold that is badly built, overloaded or altered collapses or tips, or a worker falls from an unguarded platform.
Step 2Contact with overhead power linesA ladder, aerial work platform, crane, dump truck or long length of material touches or gets close to an overhead line and electrocutes people.
Step 4Strong wind and stormsWind blows sheets, panels and people off roofs and scaffolds, and storms and lightning make work at height and lifting unsafe.
Step 1Falling from a roof edgeA worker slips or walks off the edge of a roof or gutter line and falls to the ground.
Almost certainLikelyPossibleUnlikelyRareHow bad it could be: First aid only to FatalityBA
Highest risk on roof truss installation: Critical before controls (B), down to Medium after controls (A), on the Canada 5 by 5 risk matrix (likely and fatality becomes unlikely and serious injury).

What changes on your site

This example covers the job itself. Your site may add more. Add controls for any of these that apply (the builder asks you these as yes or no questions):

  • Will anyone use a ladder or stepladder?
  • Will anyone work on a roof?
  • Is there a fragile roof, skylight or clear roof sheet?
  • Will you use an aerial work platform (scissor lift or boom lift)?
  • Was the building built before 1990?

Licences and legal requirements in Canada

Equipment on this job that needs a licence, ticket or training:

  • Mobile crane: Provincial crane operator certification, qualified rigger
  • Frame scaffold: Provincial scaffold erector training

Employers must identify hazards before work starts and control them, and workers must be told about them. A field level hazard assessment is done on site, at the start of each shift or task, and reviewed again when conditions change.

Rules that apply: Provincial OHS regulation, fall protection; Provincial OHS regulation, scaffolds; Provincial OHS regulation, cranes and hoisting.

Why FLHAs get rejected

Prime contractors and COR auditors send documents back for these reasons. This example avoids them, but check yours too.

  • End of shift boxes already say "None" when the form was signed at the start of the shift.
  • One FLHA reused for days or weeks, or a "review by" date a month away, when the work and conditions change daily.
  • No time of assessment and no record of any revision, which Alberta s.7(3) requires.
  • Workers signed that they "read" it, but nothing shows they took part, which Alberta s.8(1) requires.
  • Work at height with no fall protection plan where the province requires one, or no written rescue procedure for workers using fall arrest.
  • Permits or locates required on site but no permit or ticket numbers recorded.
  • No re-assessment entry after an obvious change such as weather, a new task or a new crew member.

Rules by province for roof truss installation

Province or territoryKey local ruleRegulator
OntarioFall protection (O. Reg. 213/91 s.26) applies at a fall of more than 3 m, more than 1.2 m where the work area is used as a path for a wheelbarrow or similar equipment, and at any height into operating machinery, water or other liquid, a hazardous substance, or through an opening.Ontario Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development
British ColumbiaFall protection is required where a fall of 3 m or more may occur (s.11.2). A written fall protection plan is required at 7.5 m or more where there are no permanent guardrails (s.11.3).WorkSafeBC
AlbertaA hazard assessment must be done before work begins, and before a new work site is built (OHS Code s.7(1)). The results must be written down with the controls (s.7(2)).Alberta Occupational Health and Safety
QuebecGuardrails (Safety Code s.2.9.1, as amended by Decret 63-2025) are needed where a worker could fall into liquid or a hazardous substance, onto moving parts or dangerous equipment, 1.2 m or more when using a vehicle, 1.5 m or more when handling a load, and more than 3 m in all other cases.CNESST (Commission des normes, de l'equite, de la sante et de la securite du travail)
ManitobaA prime contractor is required whenever more than one employer or self employed person works on the site at the same time (Act s.7).Manitoba Workplace Safety and Health Branch
SaskatchewanAn occupational health committee is required at 10 or more workers of one employer (Act s.3-22).Saskatchewan Ministry of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety, OHS Division
Nova ScotiaWorkers must be trained in fall protection before using it or working in, supervising or planning work in a fall protection area, with a refresher at least every 3 years (WHSR s.21.19).Nova Scotia Department of Labour, Skills and Immigration, Safety Branch (OHS)
New BrunswickFall protection is needed from 3 m above water or the nearest permanent safe level (Reg 91-191 s.49(1)(a)(i)).WorkSafeNB
Newfoundland and LabradorGive written notice to the minister before starting a construction project that will last 30 days or more, with the site, location, type of work and number of workers (Regs s.8).Government Services, Occupational Health and Safety Division
Prince Edward IslandFall protection is needed from 3 m above the nearest safe surface or water (Fall Protection Regulations s.2(1)(a)).Workers Compensation Board of PEI, OHS Division
YukonEvery employer must do hazard assessments with the committee, representative or workers, and redo them after significant changes or incidents (Regs s.1.03.01).Yukon Workers' Safety and Compensation Board
Northwest TerritoriesFall protection is needed from 3 m, or lower if there is a risk of injury (s.119(1)). Guardrails are needed for falls of 1.2 m to 3 m at permanent work sites (s.119(2)).Workers' Safety and Compensation Commission (WSCC)
NunavutNo 911. To reach the RCMP in an emergency, dial your community's first three digits then 1111 (Iqaluit: 979-1111). Put the local fire, ambulance and RCMP numbers on every FLHA.Workers' Safety and Compensation Commission (WSCC)

Questions

Do I need an FLHA for roof truss installation?

Provincial OHS law requires hazards to be assessed and controlled before work starts. A field level hazard assessment (FLHA) for roof truss installation is done on site at the start of the shift and again whenever conditions change.

Who signs the FLHA?

The supervisor and every worker take part in the assessment and sign on before work starts, then sign off at the end of the shift. Review it and re-sign whenever the task or conditions change.

How long do I keep it?

Keep completed hazard assessments for at least 3 years (COR auditors sample the last 12 months). Review this FLHA and re-sign whenever the task, crew or conditions change.

What PPE is needed for roof truss installation?

Usually CSA green triangle safety boots (CSA Z195), Full body harness (fall arrest), Hard hat (CSA Z94.1), Safety glasses (CSA Z94.3), Hearing protection, Work gloves, High-visibility vest (CSA Z96), Sun protection (sunscreen, hat, long sleeves), Safety goggles, Face shield. The site rules may add more, so check with the general contractor.

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Blank FLHA template: free FLHA templates. Also for other countries: Australia (SWMS) · United Kingdom (RAMS) · United States (JHA)

Sources