Genie 'no' the scissor says harnesses

Genie Industries has made a clear statement on the use of harnesses with scissor lifts, stating that personal protective equipment is not required in addition to the scissor's guardrails.

It added that where an employer or local authority requires the use of a harness, then only dedicated harness anchor points should be used, and never the guardrails of its machines.

Genie's statement – issued to AI's sister magazine in North America, American Lift 'Handlers (ALH) – follows a recent debate in the US over the question of harnesses and scissor lifts, and there is little evidence that any consensus is emerging. While most manufacturers, and IPAF, state that harnesses are not required in scissor lifts, major players JLG Industries and Sunbelt Rentals both hold the contrary view.

UpRight, meanwhile, sees both sides of the argument, recommending harnesses in larger scissors but not in smaller scissors where “we believe, like OSHA [the US health and safety body], that wearing a harness and lanyard is actually more dangerous”.

This great shot shows a specially modified 2000 kg Scanclimber SC2032F being used on the construction of a new cooling tower at the Neurath Power Plant in Germany. Contractor Wiemer 'Trachte used the hoist to transport materials and passengers during the concrete slip–forming operations. To adapt to the concave shape – the tower has a 108 m diameter at the base and 69 m at the top – ‘distance sheeves’ were installed between the 1.5 m long mast sections, and the distance between anchors was reduced to 12 m from the normal 21 m. Cable guides also had to be modified with special rollers to minimise the cable tension.