a means of access must be provided to a scaffold platform

A MEANS OF ACCESS MUST BE PROVIDED TO A SCAFFOLD PLATFORM FOR FREE
A MEANS OF ACCESS MUST BE PROVIDED TO A SCAFFOLD PLATFORM PORTABLE

Never use crossbraces to gain access to a scaffold working platform. Study the above OSHA rules and have a better understanding of when things do not look right. To totally ignore a problem is asking for trouble. However, you still must be able to recognize hazardous conditions when climbing up and down, to and from, a work surface. Be uniformly spaced within each frame section.Īs a user of scaffolds you are not allowed to erect or dismantle them - unless you are trained and designated to do so. Be specifically designed and constructed for use as ladder rungs. Scaffold frames that are used as access ladders must: Ramps and walkways six feet or more above lower levels must have guardrail systems in place. Have guardrails on the open sides and ends of each landing.

Have slip-resistant surfaces on treads and landings. Be equipped with a stairrail consisting of a toprail (handrail) and a midrail on each side of each scaffold stairway. Have slip-resistant treads on all steps and landings. Be provided with rest platforms at 12 foot intervals. Equipped with a rest platform at 35-foot maximum vertical intervals. Positioned so the bottom rung is not more than 24 inches above your starting point. Positioned so as not to tip the scaffold. Portable, hook-on, and attachable ladders - It is critical that portable, hook-on, and attachable ladders are by direct access from another scaffold, structure, personnel hoist, or similar surface.

A MEANS OF ACCESS MUST BE PROVIDED TO A SCAFFOLD PLATFORM PORTABLE

Portable ladders, hook-on ladders, attachable ladders, scaffold stairways, stairway-type ladders (such as ladder stands), ramps, walkways, integral prefabricated scaffold access, or equivalent means or 21.A.02 The AHA, approved by the GDA, for the activity in which means of access are to be used shall delineate the following: a.

A MEANS OF ACCESS MUST BE PROVIDED TO A SCAFFOLD PLATFORM FOR FREE

When a structure has two or more means of access between levels, at least one means of access shall always be availa ble for free passage of employees. Access to and between scaffold platforms more than two feet above or below the point of access must be made by: passage, a second means of access shall be provided. For your safety, you should observe the following OSHA and your company rules when getting on or off a scaffold work area. The OSHA rules apply to all employees gaining access to a scaffold work surface. This is strictly forbidden in the new scaffold rule.

Workers, when not provided with a proper stairway or ladder, might be tempted to use crossbraces to climb the scaffold.

When erecting and dismantling supported scaffolds, a competent person must determine the feasibility of providing a safe means of access and fall protection.Getting to the work level of a scaffold has always been a serious problem.

A competent person must inspect the scaffold and components for visible defects before each work shift and after any occurrence that could affect the structural integrity.

Employers must train each employee who works on a scaffold on the hazards and the procedures to control the hazards.

Supported scaffolds with a height-to-base of more than 4:1 must be restrained from tipping by guying, tying, bracing or the equivalent.

Supported scaffold platforms must be fully planked or decked.

Support scaffold footings must be level and capable of supporting the loaded scaffold.

Midrails must be installed approximately halfway between the toprail and the platform surface.Guardrails and crossbracing must comply with specified heights.Fall protection or fall arrest systems are required for workers more than 10 feet above a lower level.Some additional key provisions of OSHA’s scaffolding standard include:

The space must not exceed 9 inches (24. Every platform must be planked and decked as fully as possible with the space between the platform and uprights not more than 1 inch (2.5 centimeters) wide. Load carrying timber members should be a minimum of 1,500 lb-f/in 2 construction grade lumber. Scaffold safety requirements for platform construction. Scaffolds and scaffold components must not be loaded in excess of their maximum intended loads or rated capacities, whichever is less. A qualified person must design the scaffolds, which are loaded in accordance with that design. OSHA’s scaffolding standard requires that each scaffold and scaffold component must support without failure its own weight and at least 4 times the maximum intended load applied or transmitted to it. These statistics are an indication of how vitally important it is for employers to increase their vigilance to protect employees who work on or near scaffolding by maintaining compliance with all provisions of OSHA’s scaffolding standard (. Scaffolding is consistently ranked third on OSHA’s Top Ten List of the most frequently cited standards violations. An estimated 2.3 million workers, or 65% of the construction industry, work on scaffolds, and thousands of workers are injured every year in scaffolding-related accidents.

A means of access must be provided to a scaffold platform