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The Climbing Wall Association is the standard setting organization for the manufactured climbing wall industry. The CWA develops standards in four key areas:
• Design and engineering of manufactured climbing structures
• Structural inspection of manufactured climbing structures
• Operational standards for climbing facilities
• Certification standards for climbing wall instructors
• Industry Practices: A Sourcebook for the Operation of Manufactured Climbing Walls, Third Edition
• General Specification for Design and Engineering of Artificial Climbing Structures, First Edition
• Specification for the Structural Inspection of Artificial Climbing Structures, First Edition
• The CWA Guide to Climbing
The ClimbSmart!™ program is a national public awareness campaign addressing the elements of risk in climbing sports, climbers’ safety, and personal responsibility. Created by ORCA in 1993, the program is now maintained by CWA. The ClimbSmart program was developed around a four point universal warning system for climbing sports and distributes educational materials in various formats such as posters, stickers, and brochures. The general warning poster addresses inherent risks in climbing, qualified instruction, and personal responsibility for safety in a climbing facility.