Posted in Safety Equipment
There is a wide variety of applications for safety man baskets, with several types of baskets used for varying purposes. Knowing the intended uses of each basket, as well as the safety procedures for each, is essential for making informed purchasing decisions and proper implementation once your basket arrives at your facility or work site.
In general, safety baskets are used for accessing elevated work areas and items, and can be mounted on a range of machines, such as forklifts, cranes and telehandlers. Some popular uses for safety baskets include:
In the unfortunate circumstance where a worker is injured on-site, a rescue basket is a highly effective, safe and secure means of extracting the injured person from a crane-accessible location. For example, Koke’s sturdy, heavy-duty Hospital Rescue Basket is designed to fit an ambulance gurney/stretcher for emergency transport. The basket contains four tie-down points to keep the gurney or stretcher secure, and lanyard hook points for emergency personnel, if needed. The lower half of the basket is enclosed in mesh to help keep everything contained during transport, while the open upper half allows for emergency personnel to easily access the patient.
Specialized construction man baskets can be used to safely lift personnel in the air, using a telehandler. Telehandlers are often used as rough-terrain forklifts for outdoor industrial or construction projects; they feature large wheels on a heavy chassis. Lifting is achieved with a thick telescoping boom, frequently able to reach up to about 50 feet. A traction grip floor surface on the basket further enhances worker safety while using the basket.
Common uses of a construction man basket mounted on a telehandler include: commercial and residential construction; bridge and overpass construction, inspection and maintenance; and commercial painting, pressure-washing and sand-blasting. These are just a few potential applications for this diverse equipment.
There’s a wide array of industrial and mining applications where a safety basket is well suited for the job. Heavy duty, crane-supported man baskets — also known as suspended personnel platforms — are a good choice for these situations, when other means just won’t work. However, suspended personnel platforms are only used for reaching elevated work areas when ladders, scaffolds, stairways, aerial lifts and personnel hoists cannot be utilized safely. They are subject to stringent OSHA and other safety laws governing their use, and must be rigorously inspected and tested before each use, in order to ensure safety of the personnel employing it.
There may be times on a job site where lifting personnel without a crane is necessary, like when reaching high warehouse shelves or signage. These are situations when a forklift-mounted safety man basket is useful.
These types of man baskets can be used by workers to accomplish many different tasks in a warehouse or industrial site, including picking-up orders, maintaining inventory, changing light bulbs or electrical fixtures, carrying out warehouse maintenance, painting roofs or walls, installing overhead plumbing and many more duties. Baskets can accommodate single or multiple workers, depending on the type of basket and the work it is intended for.
