Public Playground Safety - CPSC.gov
Public PlaygroundSafety HandbookU.S. Consumer Product Safety CommissionSaving Lives and Keeping Families Safe
U.S. CO NSU M ER PRO DUCT SA FET Y CO M MISSIO N4 3 3 0 E AST W EST HIG HWAYBE TH ESDA , M D 20 814December 29, 2015The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s (“CPSC” or “Commission”) Public PlaygroundSafety Handbook was first published in 1981 under the name A Handbook for Public Playground Safety.The recommendations in the Handbook are focused on playground-related injuries and mechanicalmechanisms of injury; falls from playground equipment have remained the largest single hazard patternassociated with playground use. Since the first edition, the Commission has included recommendationsthat playgrounds not be installed over concrete, asphalt, or paved surfaces to address serious head injuriesdue to falls from the equipment. Additionally, the Commission has made suggestions for commonlyused loose-fill and unitary surfacing materials (e.g., wood mulch, pea gravel, sand, gym mats, andshredded/recycled rubber mulch) that provide head impact attenuation and can mitigate the hazardpresented by falls from playground equipment. Maintaining the focus on falls, the Handbook’s surfacingrecommendations are based on the surfacing material’s energy absorbing effectiveness.During the past 35 years, innovations in technology have led to new playground equipment and surfacingpractices. Voluntary standards for equipment and impact attenuation for protective surfacing haveevolved. The 2010 edition of the Handbook, the most recent version, still discusses common materials,but also covers new surfacing systems that are specifically designed and tested to comply with ASTMF1292, the voluntary standard for measuring impact attenuation of surfacing. Maintaining that focus,Section 2.4 of the Handbook identifies shredded/recycled rubber mulch as an “Appropriate Surfacing”product, given that this product can meet the impact attenuation requirements of ASTM F1292, as longas minimum depths of the material are maintained, as specified in Table 2 of Section 2.5. This notation issolely focused on the impact attenuation to minimize serious head injuries, and not on other aspects thatmay pose other risks, such as chemical exposure or ingestion.
TABLE OF 1.61.71.8Page No.Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1Scope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1Intended Audience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1What is a Public Playground? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1Public Playground Safety Voluntary Standards and CPSC Handbook History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1ASTM playground standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2Significant Revisions for 2008 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2Equipment guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2Surfacing guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2General guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2Other revisions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2Playground Injuries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . General Playground Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5Selecting a Site . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5Shading considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5Playground Layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5Accessibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Age separation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Age group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Conflicting activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Sight lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Signage and/or labeling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Supervision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7Selecting Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Equipment not recommended . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Surfacing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Equipment not covered by protective surfacing recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Selecting a surfacing material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9Equipment Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10Durability and finish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10Hardware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11Metals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12Paints and finishes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12Wood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12Assembly and Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1333.13.23.2.13.33.3.13.3.23.43.5Playground Hazards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14Crush and Shearing Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14Entanglement and Impalement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14Strings and ropes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14Entrapment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15Head entrapment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15Partially bound openings and angles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16Sharp Points, Corners, and Edges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16Suspended Hazards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16PUBLICATION #325 NOVEMBER 2010
Handbook for Public Playground Safety3.63.7Tripping Hazards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16Used Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1744.14.24.34.4Maintaining a Playground . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Maintenance Inspections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Repairs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Maintaining Loose-Fill Surfacing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Recordkeeping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195Parts of the Playground . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205.1Platforms, Guardrails and Protective Barriers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205.1.1Platforms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205.1.2Stepped platforms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205.1.3Guardrails and protective barriers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205.2Access Methods to Play Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225.2.1Ramps, stairways, rung ladders, and step ladders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235.2.2Rungs and other hand gripping components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245.2.3Handrails . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245.2.4Transition from access to platform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245.3Major Types of Playground Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245.3.1Balance beams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245.3.2Climbing and upper body equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245.3.3Log rolls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305.3.4Merry-go-rounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305.3.5Seesaws . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315.3.6Slides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325.3.7Spring rockers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365.3.8Swings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 375.3.9Fall height and use zones for composite structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 415.3.10Fall height and use zones not specified elsewhere . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41APPENDICESA Appendix A: Suggested General Maintenance Checklist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43B Appendix B: Playground Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45B.1Templates, Gauges, and Testing Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45B.2Test Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49B.2.1Determining whether a projection is a protrusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49B.2.2Projections on suspended members of swing assemblies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49B.2.3Projections on slides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49B.2.4Entrapment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51B.2.5Test fixtures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Handbook for Public Playground Safety1. INTRODUCTIONIn recent years, it is estimated that there were more than200,000 injuries annually on public playgrounds acrossthe country that required emergency room treatment. Byfollowing the recommended guidelines in this handbook,you and your community can create a safer playgroundenvironment for all children and contribute to the reduction of playground-related deaths and injuries.1.1 ScopeThis handbook presents safety information for public playground equipment in the form of guidelines. Publication ofthis handbook is expected to promote greater safety awareness among those who purchase, install, and maintain publicplayground equipment. Because many factors may affectplayground safety, the U.S. Consumer Product SafetyCommission (CPSC) staff believes that guidelines, ratherthan a mandatory rule, are appropriate. These guidelines arenot being issued as the sole method to minimize injuriesassociated with playground equipment. However, theCommission believes that the recommendations in thishandbook along with the technical information in theASTM standards for public playgrounds will contribute togreater playground safety.Some states and local jurisdictions may require compliancewith this handbook and/or ASTM voluntary standards.Additionally, risk managers, insurance companies, or othersmay require compliance at a particular site; check withstate/local jurisdictions and insurance companies for specificrequirements.1.2 Intended AudienceThis handbook is intended for use by childcare personnel,school officials, parks and recreation personnel, equipmentpurchasers and installers, playground designers, and anyother members of the general public (e.g., parents and schoolgroups) concerned with public playground safety and interested in evaluating their respective playgrounds. Due to thewide range of possible users, some information provided maybe more appropriate for certain users than others. Thevoluntary standards listed in 1.4.1 contain more technicalrequirements than this handbook and are primarily intendedfor use by equipment manufacturers, architects, designers,and any others requiring more technical information.1.3 What is a Public Playground?“Public” playground equipment refers to equipment for useby children ages 6 months through 12 years in the playground areas of: Commercial (non-residential) child care facilities Institutions Multiple family dwellings, such as apartment and condominium buildings Parks, such as city, state, and community maintainedparks Restaurants Resorts and recreational developments Schools Other areas of public useThese guidelines are not intended for amusement parkequipment, sports or fitness equipment normally intendedfor users over the age of 12 years, soft contained play equipment, constant air inflatable play devices for home use, artand museum sculptures (not otherwise designed, intendedand installed as playground equipment), equipment foundin water play facilities, or home playground equipment.Equipment components intended solely for children withdisabilities and modified to accommodate such users also arenot covered by these guidelines. Child care facilities, especially indoor, should refer to ASTM F2373 — StandardConsumer Safety Performance Specification for Public Use PlayEquipment for Children 6 Months Through 23 Months, formore guidance on areas unique to their facilities.1.4 Public Playground Safety VoluntaryStandards and CPSC HandbookHistory 1981 – First CPSC Handbook for Public Playground Safetywas published, a two-volume set. 1991 – Standard Specification for Impact Attenuation ofSurface Systems Under and Around Playground Equipment,ASTM F1292, was first published. 1991 – Two-volume set was replaced by a single-volumehandbook, which contained recommendations based on aCOMSIS Corporation report to the CPSC (Developmentof Human Factors Criteria for Playground Equipment Safety).1
Handbook for Public Playground Safety 1993 – First version of voluntary standard for public playground equipment, ASTM F1487 — Standard ConsumerSafety Performance Specification for Playground Equipmentfor Public Use, was published (revisions occur every 3 to 4years). 1994 – Minor revisions to the Handbook. 1997 – Handbook was updated based on (1) staff reviewof ASTM F1487, (2) playground safety roundtable meeting held October 1996, and (3) public comment receivedto a May 1997 CPSC staff request. 2005 – First version of voluntary standard for playgroundequipment intended for children under two years o
December 29, 2015 The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s (“CPSC” or “Commission”) Public Playground Safety Handbook was first published in 1981 under the name A Handbook for Public Playground Safety. The recommendations in the Handbook are focused on playground-related injuries and mechanical mechanisms of injury; falls from playground equipment have remained the largest .
U.S. Organizations Concerned with Playground Safety CPSC – US Consumer Products Safety commission Handbook for Public Playground Safety, Pub. No. 325 (2008) Handbook for Home Playground Safety, Pub. No 324 (2005) Only Federal Agency that has authority to have equipment removed www.cpsc.go
This playground handbook establishes nationally recognized safety standards for public playground equipment to address injuries identified by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). The CPSC estimates close to one million injuries occurred each year related to public playground equipment.
ries associated with public playground equip ment were treated in hospital emergency rooms. The Commission first became involved with playground safety in 1974. when a consumer petitioned CPSC to develop mandatory safety standards for public playground
CPSC-62800 Programming for Digital Forensics CPSC-63000 Database Systems CPSC-65500 Cloud Computing and Virtualization CPSC-66000 Programming Languages CPSC-66500 Software Vulnerabilities and Defenses. 5. Admission Requirements In order to be accepted into this program, you mus
This handbook presents safety information for public play-ground equipment in the form of guidelines. Publication of this handbook is expected to promote greater safety aware-ness among those who purchase, install, and maintain public playground equipment. Because many factors may affect playground safety
Hancbook for Public Playground Safety. 1. INTRODUCTION. 1 his handbook presents playground equipment. safety information in the form of guidelines. A Because many factors may affect playground safety, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) believes that guidelines, rather than a mandatory rule, ar
Handbook for Public Playground Safety. CPSC created its playground safety guidelines as a detailed working blueprint to help local communities, schools, day care centers, corporations, and other groups
MOUNT ASPIRING COLLEGE DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH - FEMINIST LITERARY CRITICISM - PAGE !3 OF !7. WHAT MARXIST CRITICS DO TAKEN FROM BEGINNING THEORY, BY P. BARRY2: 1. They make a division between the ‘overt’ (manifest or surface) and ‘covert’ (latent or hidden) content of a literary work (much as psychoanalytic critics do) and then relate the covert subject matter of the literary work to .
