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Rigging gear by type: what the codes and standards say

A table of the main kinds of rigging gear in tree work, which page covers each, and which rule or standard the sources read name for it, from the SafeWork NSW code, the WorkSafe New Zealand code, HSE, OSHA, BSI and TCI Magazine.

Checked against the sources at the bottom of this page on October 9, 2026. Rules, fees and pay change: the source has the last word.

This page reports what the named codes, regulators and makers say. It is not training and does not teach the work. This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. It sorts rigging gear by type, not by maker, and names no brand. All pages were read on October 9, 2026. The courses that teach rigging are in the guides on chainsaw tickets and certifications by country, and the UK award is on the page for aerial tree rigging. The rules for loads and drop zones that apply to all of this gear are on the pages about lowering loads and drop zones and exclusion zones.

Credits. Wording from HSE is adapted from pages licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Wording from the SafeWork NSW Tree works code of practice is adapted under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence, with sentences shortened and reworded. Wording from the WorkSafe New Zealand code is adapted with the source and copyright status acknowledged. OSHA, BSI and TCI Magazine are described in our own words with links.

Rules that apply to every type

The SafeWork NSW Tree works code of practice says a lowering system is only as strong as its weakest component and that components have compatible safe working loads. HSE's page Lifting equipment in arboriculture says lifting equipment, including accessories, is clearly marked with its safe working load and lists ropes, carabiners, strops and rigging systems for lowering branches as lifting equipment. TCI Magazine's lowering devices article defines a working load limit as the maker's maximum working load, found by dividing the minimum breaking load by a safety factor. The sources differ on that factor: the WorkSafe New Zealand code sets the safe working load at one-sixth of the breaking strength in its section on winches, wire ropes and accessories, and at 10 percent of the breaking strength for a climbing rope and equipment in its climbing section; the other sources read give no figure.

Which page covers which type

TypeRule or standard the sources nameWhere it is set out
Lowering devicesMaker's rating and marking; NSW code says repair by the maker only; no product standard namedRigging gear, lowering devices
Winches and pulling devicesWorkSafe NZ code section 3.4.6; HSE winches page; OSHA 1910.266 winching paragraphRigging gear, winches and pulling devices
Blocks and pulleysBS EN 12278:2007 for pulleys in climbing; no standard named for rigging blocksRigging gear, blocks and pulleys
Slings and ropesOSHA 1910.184 for slings; NZS/BS 302 Part 5 for hauling wire rope in the NZ codeRigging gear, slings and ropes
Rigging ringsNo standard named in the sources read. TCI Magazine says a ring gives friction aloft the way a natural union does; the NSW code names primary, secondary and redirection anchorsRow only: too few facts for a page of its own
CranesCrane codes of each placeThe guide on cranes in tree work and the crane rules pages linked from it
Connectors and rope grabsStandards are set out on the linked guidesThe guides on connectors and hardware ratings and climbing devices by type

Rigging gear, one page per type

Sources