Aerial Manlift Dangers
Aerial manlifts are machinery that utilize either a series of folding, linked supports, like a boom lift or an articulated boom lift or a scissor lift. These industrial types of machinery allow employees to get in touch with hard-to-reach areas. In certain ways, these kinds of machinery have made construction a lot easier and safer, although, the overall safety that comes with the unparalleled mobility of aerial manlifts has applied a new list of hazards which can accidentally result in serious injury or even death to unaware drivers.
Falls
Typically, falls could happen when employees are unable to correctly secure the lift platform or are unable to wear a safety harness. Falls can occur when somebody on the platform acts inappropriately and partakes in an activity like climbing the guard rails to gain added height. Also, accidents could be caused if the ground-based operator causes the machine to move in an unexpected motion before the worker being properly secured.
Many workers also fall because the base of their machinery is inadvertently struck by some other heavy object. During this situation, the force of the blow below becomes amplified by the length of the lift, therefore causing the worker to be abruptly catapulted off of the platform. Obviously this dangerous action has catastrophic results.
Tip-Overs
Unfortunately, boom lifts are easily susceptible to tipping over. Tip-overs can happen in any type of lift, but are more common in articulated boom lifts. Since boom lifts can move both horizontally and vertically, they are capable of changing the machine's overall center of gravity. Hence, 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 cause the machinery to tip over.