ASTM: Safe Netting
New standard sets guideline for all attractions
by Amanda Charney
Last year, the ASTM F-24 committee on ride design and manufacture finalized F2375-09, “Standard Practice for Design, Manufacture, Installation and Testing of Climbing Nets and Netting/Mesh used in Amusement Rides, Devices, Play Areas and Attractions.” It provides a baseline standard for the design and creation of climbing nets and mesh used in attractions, waterparks, and other amusement devices.
John Rexroad, task group chairman of the netting standard group and president of Pucuda Inc. and Leading Edge Safety Systems Division, shares with FUNWORLD some insight into the standard and why it’s good for the amusement industry.
How did the ASTM F2375 standard come about?
It was pushed by the industry. A lot of people were trying to determine what ASTM standards they needed to follow when designing or maintaining an area that had netting in it. There really wasn’t an answer. There were bits and pieces of ASTM standards that could and/or did apply to netted areas, so it really was a means to try to address all of the concerns and questions. Developing the standard also ensured the industry could address issues related to netting. Much of the existing language in ASTM standards was developed around other products and issues.
In what ways does this benefit the manufacturers of these products?
It gives uniformity in what measures and what standards to follow when you’re manufacturing. For example, what strength and size of rope should be used; what testing should be used, etc. It created a “standard practice” for manufacture. If one person’s making a four-inch mesh and another person’s making a three-inch mesh, the four-inch is going to be less expensive than the three-inch. The question the standard addressed was what the minimum and maximums should be, how to measure them, and why.
The same thing applies for attractions. It gives them a standard that’s based on how the product is going to perform. For example, children’s foot size was thoroughly reviewed because children are walking on it; what size is going to give a child support and prevent feet from going through—entanglement and tripping and all of those concerns. Netted areas are used from toddlers on up; this gives [facility operators] a standard to help them decide if they want to restrict certain areas to certain age groups, based on age (size)-related data.
What do operators need to know about complying with the standard or retrofitting current structures?
There isn’t any requirement for them to go in and change anything. When they’re doing their maintenance, it gives them an opportunity to make that change, but there is a section in the standard that allows them [to show] proven performance that what they’ve been doing has been performing safely.
What other areas will the subcommittee for F2375 be working on to update the standard?
There are a lot of areas within netting that aren’t addressed. Our next meeting will be in coordination with the waterpark group to integrate specific water-related issues as they relate to netting, such as compatibility with water treatment, entanglement, etc. We will also be considering elevations, which will include safe fall and/or transition distances, and elevations between nets. We’ll be coordinating with the other groups and adding to the standard to cover other areas that expand from that point.
For more on ASTM, visit www.astm.org. Contact Editor Amanda Charney at acharney@IAAPA.org.
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