Masonry Magazine December 2011 Page. 35
WHAT ARE YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES?
TRAINING AND FAMILIARIZATION
A proper survey and careful planning is only the beginning of the process.
Training and familiarization are vital parts of a successful project.
Again, OSHA has requirements for training that require compliance:
Employee Training
926.454(a)
The employer shall have each employee who performs work while on a scaffold trained by a person qualified in the subject matter to recognize the hazards associated with the type of scaffold being used and to understand the procedures to control or minimize those hazards. The training shall include the following areas, as applicable:
926.454(a)(1)
The nature of any electrical hazards, fall hazards and falling object hazards in the work area.
926.454(a)(2)
The correct procedures for dealing with electrical hazards, and for erecting, maintaining and disassembling the fall protection systems, and falling object protection systems being used.
926.454(a)(3)
The proper use of the scaffold, and the proper handling of materials on the scaffold.
1926.454(a)(4) The maximum intended load, and the load-carrying capacities of the scaffold.
Installer Training
1926.454(b)
The employer shall have each employee who is involved in erecting, disassembling, moving, operating, repairing, maintaining, or inspecting a scaffold trained by a competent person to recognize any hazards associated with the work in question. The training shall include the following topics, as applicable:
1926.454(b)(1)
The nature of scaffold hazards:
1926.454(b)(2)
The correct procedures for erecting, disassembling, moving, operating, repairing, inspecting, and maintaining the type of scaffold in question.
1926.454(b)(3)
The design criteria, maximum intended load-carrying capacity and intended use of the scaffold.
PLANKING
Planking rules, as they apply to general scaffolds, apply in the same way on MCWP's.
OSHA stipulates the following:
1926.451(b)(4)
Each end of a platform, unless cleated or otherwise restrained by hooks or equivalent means shall extend over the centerline of its support at least 6 inches.
1926.451(b)(5)(i)
Each end of a platform 10 or less in length shall not extend over its support more than 12 inches unless it is designed and installed so that the cantilevered portion of the platform is able to support employees and/or materials without tipping or has guardrails which block employee access to the cantilevered end.
1926.451(b)(5)(ii)
Each platform greater than 10 feet in length shall not extend over its support more than 18 inches, unless it is designed and installed so that the cantilevered portion of the platform is able to support employees materials without tipping or has guardrails which block employee access to the cantilevered end.
1926.451(b)(7)
On scaffolds where platforms are overlapped to create a long platform, the overlap shall occur only over supports and shall not be less than 12 inches unless the platforms are nailed together, or otherwise restrained to prevent movement.
So, what are your responsibilities?
* The MCWP installation must be planned by a qualified person
* The installation must be designed to abate all recognized hazards
* The installation must be constructed and loaded according to the plan
* The units can only be erected and dismantled under the supervision of a competent person who is qualified in the erecting and dismantle process and carried out by experienced and trained employees selected by the competent person.
* No one can use the equipment unless they have been trained by a competent person.
* OSHA regulations must be followed first, then augmented by industry best practice (e.g. ANSI standards, IPAF/SIA Safe Use Guidelines)