I was recently called in to help a company address an issue with dropped objects following two incident reports where workers had dropped a pair of pliers and a spud wrench. When I arrived and explained the reason for my visit, one executive remarked, “Just those two? We’ve had more than 90 drops in the last 90 days!”

With real world numbers like that, it’s incredible that falling objects are not causing more serious injuries or fatalities than records indicate. Contact with objects and equipment — the majority caused by being struck by a falling object — is currently the third-largest cause of death in the workplace, behind transportation incidents and workplace violence. Still, many contractors do not take necessary precautions. It’s so easy to provide protection for both workers and their tools that it’s hard to understand why companies go without them.