Masonry Magazine August 2002 Page. 45
Safety must be made a top priority, but it must begin in the front office before the first piece of scaffold ever leaves the yard.
of the bracket. Side brackets should be secured against uplift by either pinning (if holes are provided) or wiring to the frame.
Guard Railing: This should be complete with both top rails and mid rails. Current OSHA scaffold codes require fall protection on all scaffolds where the user is exposed to a fall of 10 feet or more to a lower level. When using guard railing to satisfy the fall protection requirement, it must be installed with a top rail height of between 38 inches and 45 inches above the work platform. Mid rails must be installed approximately midway between the top rails and the work platform. Also, all top rails must be able to withstand a force of 200 pounds in any downward or horizontal direction. Don't forget guard rail panels on the side brackets at each end of the scaffold.
Toeboards: Current OSHA scaffold codes require toeboards on all sides of the work platform at heights of 10 feet or greater. Toeboards must be a minimum of 3.5 inches high and be able to withstand a force of at least 50 pounds applied in any downward or horizontal direction.
Work Platform Decking: OSHA requires all work levels to be completely decked. Always follow the OSHA chart to determine platform load capacity when using plank. When manufactured plank or decks are used, be careful not to exceed the rated load capacity. Also be sure to properly inspect all planks/platforms before installing, and once installed, check for proper overlap of the planks.
Fastening (Lock) Pins: The most popular types are snap pins, gravity pigtail pins, and hinge pins. These are recommended at all frame connections, especially if hoisting material from the platform level.
If you are dealing with a rental center, and as a customer you refuse to rent any or all of these items, the rental center is faced with a difficult dilemma: either require you, the customer, to rent the necessary components, risking loss of rental; or knowingly allow you to assemble and use the scaffold in a manner that does not comply with existing regulations. In either case, the rental center can lose.
The answer is that safety must take priority. Although you may not like the extra costs involved with the extra components, in the long run, your employees will appreciate your concern for their safety.
In the end, safety must be made a top priority, but it must begin in the front office before the first piece of scaffold ever leaves the yard.
Steve Storrer is Product Safety Manager for Bil-Jax, Inc., a leading scaffold manufacturer headquarted in Archbold, Ohio.
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Design by Drafting and Design Solutions Nov 2001
The Voice of the Mason Contractor
August 2002
Masonry 43