Genie Provides Advance Information On New Mobile Aerial Work Platform Safety Guidelines

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By December 20, 2019, American and Canadian aerial work platform operators will need to be trained on new ANSI and CSA safety standards. (Photo courtesy of Genie.)

New standards are on the way for the safe use of aerial work platforms, or mobile elevating work platforms (MEWPs) as the standards refer to them.

To help businesses understand the new ANSI A92.22-2018 and CSA B354.7:17 standards and comply with their requirements, lift manufacturer Genie is offering a white paper and has posted useful information and links on its website. It also released a lighthearted but informative music video.

“The new MEWP standards in North America will go into effect soon, and our industry as a whole needs to start preparing now for the impact these changes will have on our fleets, our customers, and equipment operators,” said Terex AWP’s Genie Senior Training Manager, Scott Owyen.

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Genie is providing helpful information on the new safety standards, including a guide to writing your company’s safe use plan for its mobile elevating work platforms. (Image courtesy of Genie.)

Training & Technology

The new standards from the American Nation Standards Institute (ANSI) and the Canadian Standards Association (CSA Group) require new safety training for American and Canadian operators, maintenance technicians, and repair personnel, and also supervisors in the US. They also mandate that every organization that uses aerial platforms and lifts to draft a safe use plan for them. All operators must be requalified under the new standards by December 20 of this year.

“As the industry is preparing to implement the new ANSI and CSA standards changes, customers need to understand their responsibilities regarding training requirements for MEWPs,” Owyen said.

The two standards will bring North American aerial work platform manufacturers more in line with ISO (International Organization for Standardization) standards and the European, Australian, and Chinese markets.

Specifically, Genie and other North American manufacturers will have new guidance on the wind ratings, chassis angle, and load capacity of their current mobile elevated work platform products. The standards stipulate that newly built lifts must have a platform load sense feature that will shut off the machine when it’s overloaded. Likewise, ground angle sensors will keep certain features from operating when the machine is parked on a slope exceeding a safe angle.

Genie says that its recent Xtra Capacity line of telescoping and articulated boom lifts complies with the new requirements.

Make A Plan

Genie’s downloadable “Safe Use Plan Guidance” whitepaper (PDF) provides tips for creating the MEWP safe use plan required by the new standards. It emphasizes that no device can protect an operator from every hazard, and that intelligence, care, and common sense are necessary for aerial safety.

“A well thought out plan can help keep everyone working around MEWPs safe by reinforcing best practices on the job, [providing help in] identifying risks, and making sure employees know what steps should be taken if something unexpected happens,” said Owyen.

The white paper outlines several considerations that a safe use plan must address, including a rescue plan to safely retrieve operators hanging by a safety harness, as an example. Other points of emphasis include hazard identification, inspections and repairs, training, and matching an appropriate lift to the job.

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Source: Genie