Aerial Manlift Hazards
Aerial man lifts are personnel lifts such as scissor lifts, boom lifts, and articulated booms lifts that use an articulated boom or a series of folding, linked supports. These equipment allows workers to get up high into previously inaccessible areas. In some ways, these types of machinery have made construction much safer and easier, however, the general safety which comes with the unparalleled mobility of aerial manlifts has applied a new list of dangers which could inadvertently cause severe injury or even death to operators who are unaware.
Falls
Falls from a man lift often happens when workers cannot secure the harness to the lift or fail to or are unable to wear a safety harness. Falls could occur when someone on the platform acts unsuitably and takes part in an activity like climbing the guard rails to gain extra height. Moreover, accidents could be caused if the operator on the ground causes the equipment to move in an unexpected motion prior to the employee being correctly secured.
Lots of workers also fall because the base of their machinery is accidentally struck by some other heavy object. In this situation, the force of the blow below becomes amplified by the length of the lift, thus causing the employee to be abruptly catapulted off of the platform. Obviously this hazardous action has catastrophic outcome.
Tip-Overs
Sadly, boom lifts are easily prone to tipping over. Tip-overs can happen in any type of lift, but are more common in articulated boom lifts. As boom lifts are able to move both vertically and horizontally, they can change the overall center of gravity of the machine. Thus, if the lift is over loaded or parked on a slope of some sort, totally extending the boom when it is in the wrong position could lead to a tip-over situation.