Aerial Manlift Dangers
Aerial man lifts are personnel lifts like boom lifts, articulated boom lifts and scissor lifts which use an articulated boom or a series of linked, folding supports. These equipment allows workers to get up high into previously inaccessible areas. In certain ways, these equipment have made construction a lot 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 lead to severe injury or even death to operators who are unaware.
Falls
Falls from a man lift usually occurs when workers fail to or are unable to wear a safety harness or cannot secure the harness to the lift. Falls could happen when somebody on the platform acts unsuitably and takes part in an activity such as climbing the guard rails to be able to gain added height. Moreover, accidents could be caused if the ground-based operator causes the machine to move in an unexpected motion prior to the employee being properly secured.
Sometimes employees can fall when the base of the lift is struck inadvertently by a heavy object. In this situation, the force of the blow below becomes amplified by the length of the lift, hence causing the employee to be suddenly catapulted off of the platform. Obviously this hazardous action has catastrophic outcome.
Tip-Overs
Unfortunately, boom lifts are easily susceptible to tipping over. Tip-overs could take place in any kind of lift, but are more common in articulated boom lifts. As boom lifts could move both horizontally and vertically, they are capable of changing the overall center of gravity of the machinery. Thus, if the lift is over loaded or parked on a slope of some kind, completely extending the boom when it is in the wrong position can result in a tip-over situation.