![]() The kinds of efforts required of a contractor to determine that there are no other practical options would be those necessary to make an informed judgment about whether equipment such as scaffolds, scissor lifts, aerial lifts and ladders could be used. Only after determining that alternatives such as these were infeasible would the use of the forklift be permitted. Before using a rough terrain forklift truck as a work platform, the employer would normally have to consider the feasibility of equipment such as scaffolds, scissor lifts, aerial lifts and ladders. You ask us to explain the kind of efforts an employer must make before concluding that there are no other practical options.Īnswer: Our standard incorporates the ANSI B56.1 - 1969 standard, not the ASME B56.6-1992 standard that you reference. Under B56.6-1992, rough terrain forklift trucks may only be used as an elevated work platform if there are no other "practical options" available. Question (4): You mention that the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) B56.6-1992, Safety Standard for Rough Terrain Forklift Trucks, contains provisions (section 5.15 and 8.25) for controls located at the elevated platform level. Whenever a forklift is used to elevate a platform and is used in a manner that makes it the equivalent of a high lift order picker truck, the controls specified in this ANSI provision must be in place. ANSI B56.1, paragraph 416, requires "order picker truck, high lift" to have travel and power controls at the platform level (see attached ANSI diagram of this type of truck). The Material Handling Equipment standard, section 1926.602(c)(1)(vi), requires that the design of all industrial trucks used by an employer meet the requirements in the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) B56.1-1969, Safety Standards for Powered Industrial Trucks. Question (3): Is there a standard that requires employees to be able to shut off the truck's power when on platforms elevated by forklifts?Īnswer: Yes. The employer would have to either find out from the manufacturer that it was designed for this use or (where that information is unavailable) obtain a certification by a certified professional engineer that the equipment was so designed. The standard places the obligation on the employer to ensure that this type of equipment is used to elevate personnel only where the manufacturer has designed it to do so. If the owner's manual for the equipment is silent in this regard, the employer must determine if the front end loader was designed for such purposes. Question (2): If the operator's manual is silent on whether the equipment may be used to elevate personnel, may an employer assume that it may be used for that purpose?Īnswer: No. ![]() Consequently, OSHA prohibits the use of such equipment to elevate personnel. If the manufacturer's operator manual states that it is not to be used for elevating personnel platforms, use of the equipment to support such a platform would violate this provision. Therefore, they fall within the requirements of §1926.451(c)(2)(iv). Powered industrial trucks, which include forklifts, as well as rough terrain forklifts, are "similar pieces of equipment" to forklifts and front end loaders in this context. (This portion of the preamble is published in Volume 61 of the Federal Register on page 46,044). ![]() OSHA notes that the commenters are in general agreement that all equipment not specifically designed to support scaffold platforms must not be used.Īll supported scaffolds, including those supported by forklifts, front-end loaders and similar pieces of equipment, must comply with the applicable requirements of §1926.451 for. ![]() In the preamble to that standard, OSHA stated that: Question (1): If a powered industrial truck operator's manual specifically states that it is not to be used for elevating personnel platforms, may the truck nonetheless be used for that purpose? If so, which standards would govern such use?Īnswer: OSHA's scaffold standard, §1926.451(c) (2)(iv), specifically requires that front-end loaders and "similar pieces of equipment" not be used to support scaffold platforms unless specifically designed by the manufacturer for such use. This responds to your April 15, 1998, letter to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), in which you ask several questions regarding the use of forklifts (powered industrial trucks) and rough-terrain forklifts (Lull, Pettibone, etc.) to elevate personnel.
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