I have a machine that travels vertically up and down. Id like to have some sort of brake to stop the moving portion from going into a free fall if things break when we have some type of failure.  The machine is closed its not a safety issue, but it might damage itself if this happens.  I want the design to be as simple as possible.  Id like something similar to a fall arrest device used for people, but I don't know how well that would hold up going up and down all day every day.  Fully loaded this mechanism will weigh about 1200 lb.   

Any ideas?