Steel Erection questions for the CHST
CHST5 Domain 3: Safety Program Development, Implementation, and Sustainment (S3.2 Apply relevant standards to worksite conditions). 3 free questions below. Every answer quotes and links the regulation paragraph it rests on.
Regulations covered
- 29 CFR 1926.752 Site layout, site-specific erection plan and construction sequence.
- 29 CFR 1926.760 Fall protection.How this section is tested
Text pulled from the eCFR, current as of 2026-10-14.
Question 1
A controlling contractor is preparing to let a steel erector start setting columns on new cast-in-place concrete piers. Field-cured cylinder breaks, tested by an appropriate ASTM method, show the concrete has reached 60 percent of the intended minimum compressive design strength. The engineer has not stated that the piers can support the erection loads. What should the steel erection contractor do?
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Answer: C. Not erect steel until it has written notification that the concrete has reached 75 percent of design strength or sufficient strength to support erection loads
The standard bars the erector from erecting steel until it has written notification that the concrete has reached 75 percent of the intended minimum compressive design strength or sufficient strength to support erection loads. Verbal approval and partial erection are not recognized alternatives, and 60 percent with no statement of sufficient strength does not meet the condition.
Answer C rests on
29 CFR 1926.752(b)(opens ecfr.gov in a new tab)“A steel erection contractor shall not erect steel unless it has received written notification that the concrete in the footings, piers and walls or the mortar in the masonry piers and walls has attained, on the basis of an appropriate ASTM standard test method of field-cured samples, either 75 percent of the intended minimum compressive design strength or sufficient strength to support the loads imposed during steel erection.”
Question 2
A steel erection crew has established a marked controlled decking zone (CDZ) on a floor 24 feet above the level below, and metal decking is being placed at the leading edge. To save time, the foreman wants a CDZ-trained employee to weld shear connectors and make final deck attachments on panels already placed inside the CDZ while the leading-edge crew keeps working. Unsecured decking in the zone is well under the allowed area, and each panel already has two safety deck attachments. What does the standard require?
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Answer: D. The work must be done outside the CDZ, because final deck attachments and shear connector installation are not permitted inside it.
The standard says final deck attachments and installation of shear connectors shall not be performed in the CDZ, so this work has to move outside the zone. Training, two safety attachments per panel, and staying under the unsecured-decking limit are separate CDZ conditions and do not make this work permissible inside it.
Answer D rests on
29 CFR 1926.760(c)(7)(opens ecfr.gov in a new tab)“(7) Final deck attachments and installation of shear connectors shall not be performed in the CDZ.”
Question 3
A steel erection crew is installing metal decking at a leading edge under a controlled decking zone (CDZ). The foreman proposes this plan for the shift: (1) lay panels and make safety deck attachments working from the leading edge back toward the control line; (2) keep unsecured decking within the CDZ under the allowed limit; and (3) have a second crew of trained leading edge workers install the shear connectors and make the final deck attachments inside the CDZ while the first crew continues forward. Which part of the plan violates the standard, and what must the foreman change?
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Answer: D. Step 3 violates the standard because final deck attachments and shear connector installation must not be performed in the CDZ, so that work must be moved outside the CDZ
The standard prohibits final deck attachments and shear connector installation in the CDZ, so that work must occur outside it even when the crew is trained. Safety deck attachments from the leading edge back to the control line are allowed, and the standard permits unsecured decking up to a limit rather than banning it.
Answer D rests on
29 CFR 1926.760(c)(7)(opens ecfr.gov in a new tab)“(7) Final deck attachments and installation of shear connectors shall not be performed in the CDZ.”
8 more steel erection questions in the full CHST bank
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Original practice questions, not real exam items. PassCited is not affiliated with or endorsed by BCSP.