Glazing insurance for glass, height and water.

Fall rules for glaziers on lifts and building edges

Storefront and curtain wall work puts your crew at an open edge with a heavy panel in their hands. Underwriters look at that on your workers' comp and liability applications, so it helps to know the rules a jobsite inspector will hold you to.

• California, 7 1/2 feet. Cal/OSHA Title 8, Section 1670 requires approved personal fall arrest, fall restraint or positioning systems to be worn by employees whose work exposes them to falling more than 7 1/2 feet from the perimeter of a structure, unprotected sides and edges, leading edges and other listed hazards, when those hazards aren't otherwise adequately protected under Cal/OSHA's orders.
• Federal OSHA, 6 feet. Under 29 CFR 1926.501(b)(1), employees on a walking/working surface with an unprotected side or edge 6 feet or more above a lower level must be protected by guardrails, safety nets or personal fall arrest systems. States that run their own OSHA plans, such as California, set their own standards.
• Falling glass. Under 1926.501(c), when employees are exposed to falling objects, the employer must have them wear hard hats and also use toeboards, screens or guardrails, a canopy, or a barricaded area employees are kept out of.
• Aerial devices. Title 8, Section 3648 says only authorized persons may operate an aerial device. It requires an employee in an elevated device to be secured to the boom, basket or tub, and it prohibits safety belts and body belts in personal fall arrest systems.

On the application, list the tallest building you've worked on, every lift and swing stage you use, and whether you own or rent it. A pane dropped onto a sidewalk is a third-party injury claim, which is where a commercial umbrella over your liability limits comes into the conversation.

California energy labels on the windows you install

In California, the label on a window or door is the proof of its energy values. Catching a unit whose label doesn't match the plans before it goes in is far easier than pulling glass later. The California Energy Commission says buildings whose permit applications are filed on or after January 1, 2026, must comply with the 2025 Energy Code.

Title 24, Part 1, Section 10-111 sets the labeling rules:

• Every manufactured fenestration product and exterior door must have a clearly visible temporary label that lists the U-factor, solar heat gain coefficient (SHGC) and visible transmittance (VT), and certifies compliance with the air leakage requirements. No other values for those items are allowed on that label.
• Values come either from National Fenestration Rating Council (NFRC) rating procedures or, for products not rated by NFRC, from the Energy Commission's defaults. Those labels must show the words "CEC Default U-factor," "CEC Default SHGC" and "CEC Default VT" followed by each value.
• Component Modeling Approach and site-built products need an NFRC label certificate listing the U-factor, SHGC and VT. Part 6 defines site-built fenestration to include storefront systems and curtain walls.

What I'd do: photograph every label and certificate before the stickers come off, and keep them with the job file. If an owner later says the glass doesn't meet the energy specs, those photos are your record. If you choose or substitute products for the customer, tell me. Product selection advice is the kind of exposure contractors professional liability is designed to address, and it's worth checking how your general liability form treats it.