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How to choose an aerial work platform
By choosing the right aerial work platform, you save time and money.More importantly, your decision will affect your employees' safety.To make the right decision you will need to evaluate your needs and evaluate what the market place has to offer.This article will help you establish what factors you will need to evaluate as you determine which aerial work platform will best fit your needs.
You may want to start by making a list of all the different jobs you can expect to do with your aerial platform.Once you have the list completed, you can begin to determine which platform will best suit your needs.
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Each platform has different advantages/disadvantages to them.For instance, the scissor lift design is very stable, but you have to have a very flat surface to work from.If you have an area that you can't put the lift on and go straight up from, you will need the crane design.Hence, the better you can narrow your needs down, the better you can determine which aerial work platform will serve you best.
Answer the following questions:
How many people do you need to lift at one time?
How high do you need to reach?
Will you need to transport the lift?
How will you transport the lift: Trailer? Pick-up truck? Fork lift?
Will the lift always stay at one location?
Will you be moving the lift over uneven surfaces? Indoor or outdoor?
Will you need leveling capability?
How narrow or wide are your access areas?
Will you need AC or DC power source?
Will you need to work over immovable objects? (like auditorium seats)
Will you need to go through standard doorways?
What is your budget range?
How much weight will the lift have to support?
How long will the lift have to run without recharging?
Where is the closest service center?
How long will the lift have between chargings?
Another consideration is gas or electric power.If you will be working in-doors for extended periods of time, you may want to use electric.However, the advantage of a gas powered lift is that it is very easy to refuel and continue working.An electric lift may take a long time to power up again.Also, you may be working in a remote location and not even be able to plug in the lift.If you will be working in a variety of locations and conditions you may consider purchasing a dual powered aerial work platform, but this will also cost you more.
Additionally, you will need to consider how your lift will be maintained.You may want to go with a service plan to keep your lift maintained.Often in the construction business the time delay of a broken lift is much more costly than the lift itself.
You may need to consider which employees will use the lift for training purposes.Some aerial work platforms are fairly easy to operate while others need a lot of practice.You will need to develop a training program and keep people trained.
You should know what kind or style of a lift you need.Now you will need to evaluate vendor to purchase from.You should be able to find vendors who will demonstrate their products so you can see how useful and durable they are.Have the future operators look at the lift and give their opinions.
In summary, the most important step in deciding which aerial work platform to purchase is to evaluate the job the platform will perform.Evaluate the job using the checklist provided.Now inspect the different products and make a purchase.
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