Written by Troy Clark for MSC Safety Solutions
Life expectancy is not an expiration date.
The current life expectancy for a man is about 76.5 years. So, when my Dad turns 76.5, should I pre-dig the hole, take him out for one last Happy Meal, load the shotgun, and take him for that final walk in the woods?
Of course not.
The example is intentionally ridiculous, but that is what makes the point. Reaching a statistical life expectancy does not tell us the exact day someone will stop functioning.
We understand that with people. With personal protective equipment, we sometimes treat age very differently.
A date stamped on a hard hat becomes an expiration date. A five-year-old harness gets thrown away because someone says ANSI requires it. Equipment gets retired based on age before anyone determines what the date actually represents.
Age matters, but it rarely answers the question by itself.
Life Expectancy and Service Life Are Different From Expiration
One statement commonly used in fall-protection training and inspection materials puts the distinction into simple terms:
“Life Expectancy – life is determined by condition and function of unit, not time. A 5-year service life is recommended for most items.”
This is industry training and inspection language rather than a definition from ANSI Z359. The principle behind it is still useful. Condition and function matter when determining whether equipment remains suitable for service.
The five-year portion needs context too. A recommended service life is different from an automatic expiration date. The manufacturer’s instructions for the specific product still control. Manufacturer approaches vary, with some establishing a maximum service life while others rely primarily on inspection and removal-from-service criteria.
ANSI/ASSP A10.32-2023 gives us a particularly useful definition:
“Service Life. The life of the product beginning from the date of first use.”
That distinction is important. Service life starts when the equipment is first put into use. The manufacture date identifies when the product was made, and those two dates can be different.
OSHA requires personal fall arrest systems in construction to be inspected before each use for wear, damage, and other deterioration. Defective components must be removed from service. Equipment subjected to impact loading must also be removed until it has been inspected and determined suitable for reuse.
OSHA’s nonmandatory fall protection guidance also requires withdrawal when significant defects are found. The guidance covers physical damage and deterioration, including damage caused by fire or corrosives. Nonfunctioning components also require removal.
A harness can therefore reach the end of its useful life well before five years.
Where the Five-Year Harness Rule Came From
There is history behind the belief that fall protection equipment automatically expires after five years.
ANSI/ASSE A10.32-2004 stated that fall protection equipment manufactured from synthetic fiber had a five-year service life unless otherwise specified by the manufacturer. Its explanatory material also warned that five years was not guaranteed to be the actual service life because conditions and use could shorten it. ASSP has documented that language in its discussion of fall protection equipment lifespan.
A10.32 was reaffirmed in 2012 and revised in 2023. The current 2023 standard retains the definition of service life as beginning on the date of first use.
The ANSI/ASSP Z359 Fall Protection Code also places significant emphasis on equipment inspection and proper use throughout the life of the product. The Z359 Committee has clarified that equipment meeting an earlier version of an ANSI standard may remain in service until the end of its useful life, subject to the owner’s program and applicable manufacturer requirements.
Manufacturer guidance matters here. Werner, for example, states that it does not mandate a five-year service life for its fall protection products and instead requires the equipment to continue meeting inspection requirements.
This is why product-specific training matters. Workers may have years of fall protection experience and still need instruction on the equipment their employer actually provides. We discussed that issue in Apprenticeship Ironworker Training Is Excellent. It’s Still Not Enough for Your Company, where experienced workers had received extensive fall protection training but still lacked manufacturer-specific inspection knowledge for the equipment on the project.
What the Date Inside Your Hard Hat Actually Means
Hard hats make the same point in a way most people can see immediately.
The ANSI/ISEA Z89.1 framework distinguishes between useful-service-life guidance and the permanent date-of-manufacture marking. OSHA’s discussion of ANSI/ISEA Z89.1 requirements specifically identifies both requirements.
OSHA’s current head protection guidance tells employers to follow the manufacturer’s recommendations for lifespan and removal from service. OSHA also notes that service life depends on storage and handling as well as actual use and exposure to harsh environments such as ultraviolet radiation.
MSA provides a clear example. MSA recommends a maximum of five years for its hard hat shell and 12 months for the suspension, calculated from the date of first use. The manufacture date is molded into the shell, but MSA’s replacement period begins when the hard hat goes into service.
A hard hat can therefore sit in inventory before its service-life clock begins, assuming it has been stored according to the manufacturer’s requirements. Once it enters service, its environment and condition become increasingly important.
The date is useful, but inspection history carries more weight.
Some PPE Really Does Have a Shelf Life
PPE covers many different product types, so the same service-life approach cannot be applied blindly to everything.
Respiratory protection provides a good example. NIOSH explains that some respirators and filters have manufacturer-established shelf lives. OSHA also requires employers to establish cartridge change schedules based on objective information when an appropriate end-of-service-life indicator is unavailable.
Shelf life addresses how long a product can remain stored under specified conditions. Service life addresses the period the product can remain in use. Depending on the PPE and manufacturer, both may matter.
Instead of asking only how old the PPE is, determine what ends service for that specific product.
Stop Inspecting the Calendar and Start Inspecting the Equipment
Manufacture date and date placed in service answer different questions. Service life and shelf life add separate considerations, while removal-from-service criteria address the actual condition and history of the equipment.
For fall protection, inspection and equipment history should drive the evaluation. Exposure matters too, along with the manufacturer’s requirements. Hard hats require the same attention to their in-service date and current condition.
Age alone gives us an incomplete answer. Relatively new equipment can fail inspection, while older equipment may remain serviceable when its condition and the manufacturer’s requirements allow it.
The calendar is one piece of information. Inspection remains the deciding step.
Life expectancy is not an expiration date.
The same discipline should guide how we read the dates stamped on PPE.
