Buckle up in the US?

IPAF recommends that fall protection equipment is not required in a scissor lift, except in certain exceptional circumstances. However, the organisation is having to consult heavily in the US before offering the same advice.

Counter to IPAF's position, it is common practice in the US for scissor operators to use harnesses. Sunbelt Rentals, for example, has a policy that if a scissor has a harness anchor point in the basket then a harness should be used. Most US manufacturers have tie-in points on their guardrails.

IPAF's US subsidiary, AWPT, has been consulting with North American manufacturers as well as the Scaffold Industry Association's (SIA) Aerial Platform Council, to arrive at suitable guidance for North America. AI understands that AWPT will also begin a lobbying exercise with the US Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA), a process that will take years rather than months.

Meanwhile a SIA meeting in Baltimore in July will include a session on fall protection solutions for boom lifts, scissors and push-around personnel lifts. (See Events Diary in the news for details.)