Why it matters

A MEWP is usually a safer way to reach height than a ladder. The basket has guard-rails and room to work. But it is still a heavy machine on wheels, and it can kill the person inside it.

The WSH Council lists the hazards that have caused deaths and serious injuries on MEWPs. Most of them have nothing to do with the work itself. They come from how the machine is set up and driven.

  • Entrapment. The operator is crushed between the basket and a beam, duct or ceiling.
  • Overturning. The machine tips and throws the operator out.
  • Falls. The operator climbs onto the toe-board, mid-rail or top rail and goes over.
  • Collision. The machine hits a pedestrian, a vehicle or an overhead cable.
  • Catapult effect. On a boom lift, a jolt at the base whips the boom and flings the occupant.

Choosing the right machine

MEWPs come in several forms. A scissor lift goes straight up. A boom lift reaches up and out, over obstacles. Vertical personnel platforms suit tight indoor spaces. Some are built for smooth floors only. Others handle rough ground.

Start with a site survey by a competent person. Look at the ground, the weather and what sits overhead. Then pick a machine with enough rated load, working height and reach for the job. A machine that is too small tempts people to stretch, lean out or stand on the rails.

Order of controls

Work down the list. Use more than one step where you can.

  • Eliminate. Can the job be done from the ground, or the part lowered or built at ground level?
  • Substitute. A MEWP is often the safer swap for a ladder. Pick the type that fits the space.
  • Engineer. Use outriggers and spreader plates where the manual calls for them. Choose machines with anti-entrapment devices or shrouded controls for work under steelwork. Barricade the area.
  • Administer. Site survey, safe work procedure, fall prevention plan, rescue plan and a trained ground person.
  • Personal protection. A full-body harness on a short restraint lanyard, clipped to the maker's anchor point inside the basket.

Before you raise the platform

The operator does a pre-use check each time, following the maker's manual. If anything is wrong, the machine does not go up. Isolate it, tag it and report it.

Check the ground along the whole travel path. It must be firm and level within the maker's slope limit. Trenches, manholes, drain covers and soft backfill can all tip a machine. Any temporary cover must carry the wheel or outrigger load. Extend and chock the outriggers before you raise the platform.

Look up. Note every beam, pipe, sprinkler line and cable the basket could reach. Keep well clear of power lines. Check the wind against the maker's limit, and stop when it rises.

Cordon off the area round the machine and put up signs. Where vehicles move nearby, add barriers or traffic control. An operator who is unwell or on drowsy medicine should not drive.

Working in the basket

Everyone in the basket wears a harness with a short lanyard on the designated anchor point. The short lanyard keeps them inside if the boom jerks.

Keep both feet on the floor. Never stand on the rails, or put a ladder, box or bucket in the basket for extra height. Respect the safe working load and the maximum number of people on the plate. Count tools and materials in that load. Keep the floor tidy so nobody trips.

A MEWP is not a lift between floors. Do not step out onto a roof or slab at height. The code of practice allows it only after strict conditions are met, including the maker's approval and 100 percent tie-off.

Crushing against the controls

When an operator is pinned against a beam, their body can press the controls. The machine keeps moving. Drive slowly near overhead structures. Brief the operator on the risk, and use anti-entrapment protection where the job runs under steelwork.

Rescue and parking up

Write the rescue plan before work starts. If the operator collapses or the machine fails at height, someone on the ground must lower the basket. That person needs to know where the ground controls and emergency lowering are, and how they work. Practise it.

When the job ends, lower the platform fully and park in the designated area. Take the key out so nobody untrained can use the machine.

What the rules require (Singapore)

MOM treats a MEWP as a lifting machine. Its lifting equipment page lists MEWPs among the equipment an owner must register through an Authorised Examiner (AE). The main duties sit in regulation 21 of the WSH (General Provisions) Regulations.

  • Certificate before use (reg 21(1) and (2)). An AE must test and examine the machine and sign a certificate showing its safe working load. Keep the certificate ready for inspection.
  • Regular examination (reg 21(3)). An AE must thoroughly examine it at least once a year, or at another interval the Commissioner sets.
  • Marking and load (reg 21(6) and (7)). The safe working load and an ID number must be clearly marked. Never load past the safe working load.
  • Trained operators (reg 21(12) and (13)). Only a trained and competent person may operate it, or a trainee under direct supervision. Nobody under 18 may operate a powered lifting machine.
  • Maintenance (reg 21(16)). The owner must keep it soundly built and properly maintained.
  • Training and safety devices. MOM's 2012 MEWP circular says operators must pass an MOM-accredited course for the MEWP type, then be familiarised with each model by a competent person. It also warns that bypassing or removing interlocks is an offence under the WSH Act.
Work at height rules still apply

The Code of Practice for Working Safely at Heights requires a certified machine, use within the maker's limits, all safety devices in place, competent operators, and a travel restraint clipped to the maker's anchor point.

Common mistakes

Watch for these on every walk round.

  • A tilt alarm or outrigger interlock taped over or bypassed to save time.
  • A harness worn but not clipped on, or a long lanyard that lets the wearer go over the rail.
  • A worker standing on the mid-rail to reach the last bolt.
  • Driving with the platform raised over a drain cover or soft ground.
  • Nobody on the ground who knows the emergency lowering.
  • The key left in a parked machine, so anyone can take it up.
"I only moved it a few metres"

Moving the machine counts as operating it. A worker without the course and model familiarisation should not drive it, even across the site.

Use it on site: the mobile elevating work platforms checklist and the toolbox talk to brief your crew.

Sources

  1. Workplace Safety and Health (General Provisions) Regulations, Singapore Statutes Online (AGC).
  2. Register Lifting Equipment, Ministry of Manpower.
  3. Safety Circular on Safe Use of Mobile Elevating Work Platform (MEWP), 1 October 2012, Ministry of Manpower.
  4. Guide for Safe Use of Mobile Elevating Work Platforms, WSH Council.
  5. Code of Practice for Working Safely at Heights, WSH Council.
  6. Mobile elevating work platforms (MEWPs), UK Health and Safety Executive.

This is practical guidance, not legal advice. Laws and codes of practice change; always check the current official text and your site's own procedures.