Safe Operating Practices, Positioning, and Load and Occupant Limits
Most MEWP incidents trace back to positioning and loading, not mechanical failure. The exam tests whether you can keep the machine inside its envelope.
Load and occupants
- Rated capacity covers occupants, tools, materials, and attachments; it is not a tool allowance.
- Never exceed the maximum occupant count or the capacity on the placard.
- Keep the load centered and low; do not hang loads from the rails or lash signs and panels to the platform - that adds sail area and changes the wind rating.
- Never climb on the guardrails, use a ladder inside the platform, or stand on the mid-rail to gain height.
Positioning and travel
- Travel with the platform stowed unless the machine is Type 2/3 and the ground is firm and level.
- Avoid side pull and pushing or pulling loads; the lift is not a crane and booms can be shock-loaded.
- Watch shear and crush points between the platform and the structure; keep hands and feet inside the rails.
- Keep the platform clear of the swing radius of other equipment and of overhead obstructions.
- Use a spotter in blind spots; keep the gate latched and stand on the platform floor.
Worked example
A two-person crew loads 180 lb of tools, then wants to bolt a 60 lb sign to the top rail. Capacity is 500 lb, so weight alone passes. The sign, however, turns the platform into a sail: with 20 mph gusts the machine is outside its wind rating. The fix is to lift the sign as a separate, secured load within the platform, or use a machine with a higher wind rating.
Traps
- Reading the capacity chart as "tools only."
- Operating with the gate chained open for a hose or rope.
- Riding with the rails folded down to fit through a doorway.
- Assuming a heavier counterweight machine tolerates overloading.