Scaffolding safety

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## 1926.21 Safety Training and Education - (a) General requirements. The Secretary shall, pursuant to Section 107(f) of the ACT, establish and supervise programs for the education and training of employers and employees in the recognition, avoidance and prevention of unsafe conditions in employments covered by the act. - (b) Employer Responsibility. - 1. The employer should avail himself of the safety and health and training programs the Secretary provides. - 2. The employer shall instruct each employee in the recognition and avoidance of unsafe conditions and the regulations applicable to his work environment to control or eliminate any hazards or other exposure to illness or injury. - 3. Employees required to handle or use poisons, caustics, and other harmful substances shall be instructed regarding the safe handling and use, and be made aware of the potential hazards, personal hygiene, and personal protective measures required. ## 1926.28 Personal protective equipment - (a) The employer is responsible for requiring the wearing of appropriate personal protective equipment in all operations where there is an exposure to hazardous conditions or where this section indicates the need for using such equipment to reduce hazards to employees. - (b) Regulations governing the use, selection, and maintenance of personal protective and lifesaving equipment are described under Subpart E below. ## Subpart E ## Section 1926.104 Safety belts, lifelines, and lanyards - (a) Lifelines, safety belts, and lanyards shall be used only for employee safeguarding. Any lifeline, safety belt, or lanyard actually subjected to in-service loading, as distinguished from static load testing, shall be immediately removed from service and shall not be used again for employee safeguarding. - (b) Lifelines shall be secured above the point of operation to an anchorage or structural member supporting a minimum dead weight of 5,400 lbs. - (c) Lifelines used on rock-scaling operations, or in areas…

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## 29 CFR 1926 (OSHA) - (iv) When midrails are used, they shall be installed at a height approximately midway between the top edge of the guardrail system and the platform surface. - (v) When screens and mesh are used, they shall extend from the top edge of the guardrail system to the scaffold platform, and along the entire opening between the supports. - (vi) When intermediate members (such as balusters or additional rails) are used, they shall not be more than 19 inches (48 cm) apart. - (vii) Each toprail or equivalent member of a guardrail system shall be capable of withstanding, without failure, a force applied in any downward or horizontal direction at any point along its top edge of at least 100 pounds (445 n) for guardrail systems installed on single-point adjustable suspension scaffolds or two-point adjustable suspension scaffolds, and at least 200 pounds (890 n) for guardrail systems installed on all other scaffolds. - (viii) When the loads specified in paragraph (g)(4)(vii) of this section are applied in a downward direction, the top edge shall not drop below the height above the platform surface that is prescribed in paragraph (g)(4)(ii) of this section. - (ix) Midrails, screens, mesh, intermediate vertical members, solid panels, and equivalent structural members of a guardrail system shall be capable of withstanding, without failure, a force applied in any downward or horizontal direction at any point along the midrail or other member of at least 75 pounds (333 n) for guardrail systems with a minimum 100 pound toprail capacity, and at least 150 pounds (666 n) for guardrail systems with a minimum 200 pound toprail capacity. - (x) Suspension scaffold hoists and non-walk-through stirrups may be used as end guardrails, if the space between the hoist or stirrup and the side guardrail or structure does not allow passage of an employee to the end of the scaffold. - (xi) Guardrails shall be surfaced to prevent injury to an employee from punctures or lacerations…

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- protected by a safety lifebelt attached to a lifeline. The lifeline shall be securely attached to substantial members of the structure (not scaffold), or to securely rigged lines, which will safely suspend the worker in case of a fall. - 11. Two-point suspension scaffolds shall be securely lashed of the building or structure to prevent them from swaying. Window cleaners' anchors shall not be used for this purpose. - 10. Where acid solutions are used, fiber ropes are not permitted unless acid-proof. ## I. Single-point adjustable suspension scaffolds. - 8. The hoisting machines, cables, and equipment shall be regularly serviced and inspected after each installation and every 30 days thereafter. - 9. The units may be combined to form a two-point suspension scaffold. Such scaffold shall comply with paragraph (g) of this section. - 10. The supporting cable shall be straight for it's entire length, and the operator shall not sway the basket and fix the cable to any intermediate points to change his original path of travel. - 11. Equipment shall be maintained and used in accordance with the manufacturers' instructions, - 12. Suspension methods shall conform to applicable provisions of paragraph (g) and (h) of this section. ## Code of safe practices for suspended powered scaffolds It shall be the responsibility of all employers and users to read and comply with the following common-sense guidelines, which are designed to promote safety in the erection and use of suspended powered scaffolds. These guidelines are not allinclusive, nor do they supplant or replace other additional safety and precautionary measures to cover usual and unusual conditions. If these guidelines conflict in anyway with state, local, or federal statute or governmental regulation, said state statute or regulation shall supersede these guidelines, and it shall be the responsibility of each employer and user to comply therewith and also to be knowledgeable and understand all state, local or fed…

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- (b) designed, constructed and erected to support or resist: - (i) in the case of a wooden scaffold, at least 4 times the load that may be imposed on the scaffold; - (ii) in the case of a metal scaffold, at least 2.2 times the load that may be imposed on the scaffold; - (iii) in the case of any components suspending any part of a scaffold supporting workers, at least 10 times the load that may be imposed on those components; and - (iv) 4 times the maximum load or force to which the scaffold is likely to be subjected without overturning; and - (c) erected, maintained and dismantled by a competent worker. - (3) An employer or contractor shall ensure that a freestanding scaffold is restrained from overturning by guying or other suitable means. - (4) An employer or contractor shall ensure that a scaffold that is built from the ground or other surface: - (a) is supported by a foundation that is of sufficient area, stability and strength to ensure the stability of the scaffold; - (b) is set level on a stable sill that is at least 38 x 240 millimetres and continuous under at least 2 consecutive supports; - (c) has a base plate installed in any upright that could penetrate the sill; - (d) is supported against lateral movement by adequate, secure bracing; - (e) is anchored: - (i) vertically at not less than 4-metre intervals and horizontally at not less than 6-metre intervals; - (ii) if designed by a professional engineer, at intervals recommended by a professional engineer; or - (iii) if commercially manufactured, at intervals recommended by the manufacturer; - (f) is provided with internal stairways or ladders if the scaffold is 9 metres or more in height; and - (g) is checked to ensure that the scaffold is plumb and level after each tier is added. - (5) If a scaffold is partially or fully enclosed, an employer or contractor shall ensure that all scaffold components and tie-ins are adequate to support the added load that may be placed on the scaffold as a …

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## 29 CFR 1926 (OSHA) - (iii) Each hoist shall be covered with insulated protective covers; - (iv) In addition to a work lead attachment required by the welding process, a grounding conductor shall be connected from the scaffold to the structure. The size of this conductor shall be at least the size of the welding process work lead, and this conductor shall not be in series with the welding process or the work piece; - (v) If the scaffold grounding lead is disconnected at any time, the welding machine shall be shut off; and - (vi) An active welding rod or uninsulated welding lead shall not be allowed to contact the scaffold or its suspension system. - (g) Fall protection. (1) Each employee on a scaffold more than 10 feet (3.1 m) above a lower level shall be protected from falling to that lower level. Paragraphs (g)(1) (i) through (vii) of this section establish the types of fall protection to be provided to the employees on each type of scaffold. Paragraph (g)(2) of this section addresses fall protection for scaffold erectors and dismantlers. NOTE TO PARAGRAPH (G)(1): The fall protection requirements for employees installing suspension scaffold support systems on floors, roofs, and other elevated surfaces are set forth in subpart M of this part. - (i) Each employee on a boatswains' chair, catenary scaffold, float scaffold, needle beam scaffold, or ladder jack scaffold shall be protected by a personal fall arrest system; - (ii) Each employee on a single-point or two-point adjustable suspension scaffold shall be protected by both a personal fall arrest system and guardrail system; - (iii) Each employee on a crawling board (chicken ladder) shall be protected by a personal fall arrest system, a guardrail system (with minimum 200 pound toprail capacity), or by a three-fourth inch (1.9 cm) diameter grabline or equivalent handhold securely fastened beside each crawling board; - (iv) Each employee on a self-contained adjustable scaffold shall be protected by a guardrail …

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## 29 CFR 1926 (OSHA) - (8) Employees shall be prohibited from working on scaffolds covered with snow, ice, or other slippery material except as necessary for removal of such materials. - (9) Where swinging loads are being hoisted onto or near scaffolds such that the loads might contact the scaffold, tag lines or equivalent measures to control the loads shall be used. - (10) Suspension ropes supporting adjustable suspension scaffolds shall be of a diameter large enough to provide sufficient surface area for the functioning of brake and hoist mechanisms. - (11) Suspension ropes shall be shielded from heat-producing processes. When acids or other corrosive substances are used on a scaffold, the ropes shall be shielded, treated to protect against the corrosive substances, or shall be of a material that will not be damaged by the substance being used. - (12) Work on or from scaffolds is prohibited during storms or high winds unless a competent person has determined that it is safe for employees to be on the scaffold and those employees are protected by a personal fall arrest system or wind screens. Wind screens shall not be used unless the scaffold is secured against the anticipated wind forces imposed. - (13) Debris shall not be allowed to accumulate on platforms. - (14) Makeshift devices, such as but not limited to boxes and barrels, shall not be used on top of scaffold platforms to increase the working level height of employees. - (15) Ladders shall not be used on scaffolds to increase the working level height of employees, except on large area scaffolds where employers have satisfied the following criteria: - (i) When the ladder is placed against a structure which is not a part of the scaffold, the scaffold shall be secured against the sideways thrust exerted by the ladder; - (ii) The platform units shall be secured to the scaffold to prevent their movement; - (iii) The ladder legs shall be on the same platform or other means shall be provided to stabilize the ladd…