Aerial Manlift Dangers
Aerial man lifts are personnel lifts like articulated boom lifts, scissor lifts and boom lifts that use an articulated boom or a series of linked, folding supports. These equipment enables workers to get up high into previously inaccessible places. In some ways, these types of machines have made construction a lot safer and easier, however, the overall safety that comes with the unparalleled mobility of aerial manlifts has applied a new list of hazards which can inadvertently cause serious injury or even death to unaware operators.
Falls
Falls from a man lift normally happens when workers cannot secure the harness to the lift or fail to or are unable to wear a safety harness. Falls could happen when someone on the platform acts wrongly and participates in an activity like climbing the guard rails to be able to gain additional height. In addition, mishaps could be caused if the ground-based operator causes the machine to move in an unexpected motion prior to the employee being correctly secured.
At times workers could fall when the lift's base is struck accidentally by a heavy thing. During this situation, the force of the blow below becomes amplified by the lift's length, thus causing the employee to be abruptly catapulted off of the platform. Obviously this dangerous action has terrible outcome.
Tip-Overs
Boom lifts are prone to tipping over. Tip overs are more frequent in articulated boom lifts, but can happen in any type of lift. Since boom lifts could move both horizontally and vertically, they are capable of changing the overall center of gravity of the machinery. Hence, if the lift is over loaded or parked on an incline of some sort, completely extending the boom when it is in the wrong position can result in a tip-over situation.