In this post
Scissor lifts, boom lifts and bucket trucks get inspected on three clocks. The operator checks the lift before each shift. A mechanic does a deeper inspection every few months. And once a year, the whole machine gets a full going-over.
This post walks through each one, what OSHA's rules add, and what to do when a lift fails its check. It explains the standards. It isn't legal advice, so read them, and the lift's manual, before you change your program.
What the standards call these machines
The ANSI A92 standards call scissor lifts and boom lifts mobile elevating work platforms, or MEWPs. Group A machines keep the platform inside the base as it goes up, like scissor lifts and vertical masts. Group B machines can reach out past the base, like boom lifts.
ANSI A92.22 covers safe use, including inspections. ANSI A92.24 covers training. Bucket trucks and other vehicle-mounted aerial devices have their own standard, ANSI A92.2.
On the OSHA side, boom lifts and bucket trucks fall under 29 CFR 1926.453 in construction and 1910.67 in general industry. OSHA treats scissor lifts as mobile scaffolds, under 1926.451 and 1926.452(w).
What OSHA says
OSHA's construction rule for aerial lifts is short on inspections. Paragraph 1926.453(b)(2)(i) says lift controls are tested each day before use. Paragraph (b)(2)(ii) says only authorized people operate the lift.
Paragraph (b)(2)(v) is the one people remember. In a boom lift or a bucket truck, the worker wears fall protection with a lanyard attached to the boom or the basket. Not to a nearby pole or structure.
For scissor lifts, the guardrails are the fall protection under the scaffold rules. Many makers and many sites still require a harness and a restraint lanyard, so check the manual and your own rules.
Before each shift: the pre-start inspection
This is the operator's check, done every shift, before the lift goes up. ANSI A92.22 calls it the pre-start inspection. The lift's manual has the list for that model. A typical one covers:
The platform, guardrails, gate and anchor points. The boom, scissor arms, pins and welds. Tires, wheels and outriggers. Hydraulic hoses, cylinders and leaks. Fluid levels and the battery or fuel. Decals, the load rating plate and the manual on board.
Then the function test. Ground controls first, then platform controls. Emergency stop at both stations. Emergency lowering. Horn, alarms, lights and the tilt alarm.
Then the ground. ANSI A92.22 asks for a look at the work area too: slope, holes, soft ground, overhead lines, traffic and wind. A good lift on bad ground is still a bad day.
Our free aerial lift inspection checklist covers all three passes. Print it at portalbaseai.com/tools/aerial-lift-inspection-checklist.
Every 3 months or 150 hours: the frequent inspection
A qualified mechanic does the frequent inspection, using the maker's checklist. It's due every 3 months or 150 hours of use, whichever comes first.
It's also due before a lift goes back to work after sitting out of service for more than 3 months, and when you buy a used one.
Every year: the annual inspection
A qualified mechanic does a full inspection no more than 13 months after the last one. It goes deeper than the frequent inspection, through the structure, the hydraulics, the controls and the safety devices.
Keep the frequent and annual inspection records, with the date, the hours, what was found and who did it. Many fleets put a dated decal on the machine as well, so an operator can see the annual is current before getting on.
Rented lifts
A rental company usually handles the frequent and annual inspections on its own machines. That doesn't cover the pre-start check. Your operator still does it, every shift, on every rented lift.
When the lift arrives, look for the annual inspection decal, the manual and the load plate. If something's missing or the lift fails its pre-start, call the rental company and don't use it.
When a lift fails its check
A lift that fails its pre-start doesn't go up. Tag it at the machine, take the key, and tell a supervisor that shift.
Decide ahead of time which items take the lift out of service. A scuffed decal and a leaking cylinder aren't the same. Marking the stop items on the sheet means the operator doesn't have to make that call alone.
The tag stays on until a qualified person repairs it and someone signs it back into service. Write down who did each of those, and when.
Training the people who run it
ANSI A92.24 expects two things. Training on the type of lift, with a practical part on the machine. And familiarization on the exact model the operator will use: where the controls are, what the limits are, and how the emergency lowering works.
People who ride in the platform but don't run the controls get trained too, on the hazards and the fall protection. Keep a record of who's trained on which type of lift, and when.
Where PortalBase fits
PortalBase runs the pre-start check on the operator's phone, with no signal needed. Scan the QR code on the lift to open its check. A failed step takes a photo and becomes a repair with an owner. A failed critical step can take the lift out of service, and it can't be inspected or assigned again until it's repaired and released.
Each lift keeps its own history of checks and repairs, and operator training and certifications live in the same system, with the date each one runs out. See it at portalbaseai.com/products/inspections.
Sources
29 CFR 1926.453, Aerial lifts, and 1910.67, Vehicle-mounted elevating and rotating work platforms, at ecfr.gov.
29 CFR 1926.451 and 1926.452(w), scaffolds and mobile scaffolds, at ecfr.gov.
ANSI A92.22, Safe Use of Mobile Elevating Work Platforms, ANSI A92.24, Training Requirements for the Use, Operation, Inspection, Testing and Maintenance of Mobile Elevating Work Platforms, and ANSI A92.2, Vehicle-Mounted Elevating and Rotating Aerial Devices.
This post explains the standards. It isn't legal advice. States that run their own OSHA plans can set rules that differ, so check yours.