Water: Logged Ply the River Company Secret - Finning Canada

BY JON MOOREILLUSTRATION BY BRNESH BERHE8 Steps to SafeScaffoldingWhen working on high, followthese simple rules to ensure youcome back down safelyAccess ladder(mounted on end frame)Aluminum/plywoodcombination platformWhat goes up comes down again. When you’re dealing withscaffolding, that truism has an impact on safety. In January 2010,four men were killed on a worksite in Toronto when their scaffoldingfailed and they plunged 13 stories. Subsequent investigationdetermined that they had not been adequately trained on scaffoldingsafety.The sudden collapse of scaffolding or parts of it (such as theplanking), and the potential to have the tools, materials or workerson the scaffold fall, are risks that can be controlled with properequipment and skills. Here are eight tips to make sure that neverhappens on your worksite.1. Perfect plumb: A scaffold must be nearly perfectly plumb –straight up and down. The CSA standard states that the scaffoldmust not deviate from the vertical by more than 12 millimetresper three metres of height or a total of 38 millimetres over itstotal height.2. Ladder matters: Portable ladders used to reach the work platformmust be secured at the top and the bottom, and must projectabove the work platform by at least one metre. Other systemsinclude vertical stand-off ladders and scaffold stairway systemswith landings at regular intervals.3. Protection from the fall: Workers erecting or dismantlingscaffolding more than three metres above the ground must beprotected from falling.4. Standards standby: CSA International has a standard forscaffolds. Several Canadian jurisdictions have fairly detailed requirementsin their construction regs – B.C. has the most detailed – butall occupational health and safety legislation has a general dutyclause that requires taking “all reasonable measures,” meaningadherence to the CSA standard.5. Platform ply: The platform must be constructed of materialsthat meet certain standards. The usual choices are two-by-10 inchlumber; laminated wood planks specially rated for scaffold use; oraluminum or plywood panels designed for the purpose. There’sa distinction between the specifications for platform materialdesigned to support only workers and those designed to holdconstruction materials.6. Toe the line: The working platform of a scaffold has to have toeboards on at least the three outside edges to prevent tools and materialsfrom being accidentally kicked over the edge and falling on thepeople below. But they also prevent workers on the platform fromstepping or slipping over the edge below the mid-rail.7. Guard your assets: The working platform at the top of the scaffoldhas to be protected by guardrails on at least the three sidesfacing away from the building if it is more than three metres abovethe ground or floor. If there’s open space (such as a partially constructedbuilding) on the fourth side, or if the wall is more than 30centimetres from the edge of the scaffold, a guardrail may be neededthere as well.8. Looking up: Scaffolds tend to be metal structures erected closeto buildings and reaching high above the ground where they are atgreat risk of coming close to electrical transmission lines.9 THINGS YOU DON’T WANT TO DONo jumping on planks or platforms.Don’t force braces to fit. Level the scaffold until a proper fit canbe made easily.Avoid climbing or standing on cross braces or guardrails.Stay off scaffolds during storms or high winds.Don’t use ladders or makeshift devices on top of scaffolds toincrease height.Avoid overloading scaffold frames or platforms.Don’t rest materials or equipment on guardrails.Throw out bent or kinked frames rather than trying to repair them.Don’t work below a scaffold without head protection.www.finning.ca tracks & treads Spring 2011 11