Contact Us
Find Products by Markets

MARINE

rail

Oil & Gas

AG

FOOD & BEVERAGES

MANUFACTURING

PULP & PAPER

TRUCK

Find Products by Manifacturers

SAFERACK LLC

ErectaStep

RollaStep

YELLOWGATE

OPW Engineered Systems

Ultratech

Aldon

Emco Wheaton

Everything You Need for Complete Railcar Fall Protection 

Everything You Need for Complete Railcar Fall Protection 

by | Jun 19, 2025 | Blog, News, Railcar Fall Protection, Rolling Stairs and Mobile Platforms, Spill Containment

Ensuring proper railcar loading demands a comprehensive system that covers safety from every angle. From loading racks to railcar chocks, this guide will break down everything you need for the perfect railcar fall protection system. Not sure where to start? That’s where Northern Platforms comes in! For over 20 years, our team has engineered turnkey solutions that protect workers and streamline operations across Western Canada. Let’s discuss the essentials. 

Fall Protection System Essentials 

Railcar Loading Platforms

Loading platforms are essential for any operation when transporting chemicals, food products, and other materials by rail. These structures create stable work zones, allowing crews to load, unload, and easily inspect railcars. A good railcar fall protection system will:

  • Increase the productivity, safety, and efficiency of your site.
  • Adapt to any railcar type, from pressurized tankers to hopper cars.
  • Include comprehensive fall protection with gangways, safety cages, safety swing gates, multi-hatch access platforms, and more.

Standard railcar fall protection configurations can include:

  • Single spot: Pedestal
  • Single spot: Tower support with integrated canopy
  • Two spot: Connected towers
  • Multiple spots: Long loading platform with integrated canopy

To design the best loading rack for your site, Northern Platforms will ask the following questions:

  • What type of railcars do you usually deal with?
  • How are railcars being moved around your site?
  • Are you using loading arms or hoses to load and unload?
  • How many tracks are you dealing with?

When you partner with our expert team early on, we guarantee that we’ll do what it takes to create a railcar fall protection system that revolutionizes your operations. As a trusted SafeRack supplier, we have over 2 decades of expertise in this industry. Contact us today to get started!

Mobile Access Units

While ideal for many operations, fixed loading platforms aren’t always the right choice. Are you loading for a fall protection system that seamlessly adapts to day-to-day demands? SafeRacks’s MAUI allows operators to inspect cars in multiple locations around your railyard easily. With an adjustable ladder, fully enclosed safety cages, and signature “no flat” tires, this fall protection system is an excellent choice for any operation. Learn more here: “Increasing Workplace Efficiency with SafeRack’s MAUI Mobile Access Platforms”

Key features:

  • 500-pound load capacity.
  • Completely self-supporting design.
  • No-flat tires. 

Gangways

As a final fall protection measure, ensure your loading rack is equipped with a high-quality gangway that self-adjusts to eliminate dangerous gaps. For example, many of our railcar fall protection systems use a telescoping flat ramp with a 21” extension length. Learn more about how this product can revolutionize your railcar loading operation in our previous post. 

Beyond Fall Protection: Other Essential Products for Railcar Safety

  1. Spill Containment Pans: Protect your site from accidental spills and accidents. Based on your specifications, we’ll design a spill containment pan that keeps you protected. 
  2. Blue Flags: Railyards use these mandatory visual signals that warn operators when railcars are being loaded, unloaded, or serviced, indicating that movement is prohibited. 
  3. Railcar Chocks & Derailers: Use these simple tools to secure and derail railcars when needed. We stock a full range of wheel chocks, derail equipment, railroad warning signs, and FRA and OSHA-mandated rail safety products.

Trust Northern Platforms for Railcar Fall Protection Systems and More

Canadian-owned and operated since 2002, Northern Platforms is Western Canada’s leading expert in all things fall protection. As OPW’s top Canadian partner and a trusted SafeRack distributor, our turnkey service handles everything:

  1. Custom design and engineering for complex railyard demands
  2. Free site visits with certified crews to assess your needs
  3. 24/7 support from our experts in Leduc

Ready to get started? Give our team a call at 780-986-8825 today!

Rapid Containment Booms: The Key to Effective Oil Spill Containment

Rapid Containment Booms: The Key to Effective Oil Spill Containment

by | Nov 25, 2024 | Blog, News, Spill Containment

Oil spills can cause serious damage to the environment, shut down important infrastructure, and countless other negative impacts. Plus, the longer a spill goes uncontained, the worse the damage becomes. 


Unfortunately, traditional oil spill response can be slow and inconvenient. Sometimes, booms and their operators can take hours to arrive at the scene of the spill. In the meantime, oil can spread, evaporate, and even sink into the water column. This often makes cleanup much more difficult and less effective. 


Northern Platforms sells a game-changing solution to this problem. Ultratech’s Ultra-Rapid Boom is a lightweight and efficient boom system which can be deployed in minutes by just two people. 


Interested in learning more? Keep reading for more information about containment booms, why they are important, and why you should store one at your marine worksite.  

What are Containment Booms?

Containment booms are barriers used to control the spread of liquid spills. Typically, they are used to help contain marine oil spills and minimize environmental impact. Marine booms work by floating on the water’s surface and also include “a skirt,” which extends underwater to stop the spill from spreading further. 

The Need for Fast-Acting Containment Booms

Containment booms are important solutions for all marine spills. However, typical containment booms have two downsides: They can be large and inconvenient to store on your worksite, and they can also be complicated and time-consuming to deploy, often needing multiple people and operators. 


The longer a spill is uncontained, the more devastating its effects. On the other hand, if you contain a spill right after it occurs, crews are able to clean it up more effectively, as well as lessen the amount of damage caused. 


Thanks to the fastest-deploying oil boom on the planet, we can all help lessen the environmental impacts of hazardous spills. The Ultra-Rapid Boom can be easily stored on your worksite and quickly deployed as soon as the spill occurs. 

Features of a Fast-Acting Containment Boom

Useful features of this spill containment solution include:

  1. Portability

Since fast-acting booms are typically made of lightweight materials, they are much easier to transport. This means that fewer people are required to help move the boom to the site of the spill. 

  1. Quick Deployment

As the name suggests, fast-acting containment booms are designed to be quick spill containment solutions. These products can be inflated in minutes rather than hours, like traditional booms. 

  1. On-site Storage

Fast-acting booms often require less storage space than traditional spill containment booms, making them easier to store at your worksite. For example, the Ultra-Rapid Boom requires 20-33% less storage space than ordinary booms. 

  1. Modular Design and Unlimited Length 

These booms often have modular connection systems, which allow multiple segments to be linked together to contain larger spills. Their unlimited length means that you can easily contain any spill of any size. 

The Source for All Your Spill Containment Needs 

No matter the spill, Northern Platforms is here to help. With over 20 years of industry experience, we’re experts in helping you make your workplace safer, more efficient, and up to code. On top of containment booms, we also stock other types of spill containment, including berms, drums, and railcar track/spill containment pans. 


Contact us today to learn more about our products and services, including our quick delivery and personalized solutions for all your worksite safety needs.