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You Were Brought Here By Boom Lift Safety

Here Are The Essentials On Lift Truck Bucket Reconditioning/Replacement As A Companion To Boom Lift Safety

Introduction: While you may not have thought about it much in your search for Boom Lift Safety, this alternate topic has generated viable -and at times even urgent- explorations by many into other related areas of inquiry. What follows is an example of one of these issues that you may need to consider in the future:

When there is damage to a lift truck bucket, a temptation to make the repair as fast as possible is always there. There are many ways to cosmetically repair the bucket that leave the lift truck owner open to potential catastrophes. For instance, physical repairs must take into account the underlying structure. If damage has been done there and is merely patched over (or dealt with in any less than structurally responsible manner) by a repair source such as a body shop, mechanical/engine repair or even a custom molder, then the bucket could give way at a critical time it is being loaded, often high above the ground. There can, as an example, be breaks in the electrical insulating properties of the bucket that are created during a surface only type of repair. And finally, if the repairing company does not carry insurance for this specific type of application, liability for any accident could rest solely upon the bucket truck owner/operator. While this may or may not seem important to those who are currently investigating Boom Lift Safety, we suggest you forward it to those whose primary task is the maintenance of bucket truck lift mechanisms.

So, in a competent and absolutely rigorous manner:

What are the technical needs to safely insulate the two sections of the boom from one another, and how these needs can be interfered with in a variety of field-induced situations and potentially some in the repair facility itself.

How strength must be retained in the fiberglass boom insulators, no matter how much working abuse and loads they are subjected to.

Sometimes the final line of defense in preventing electrocution is the bucket itself. And, this ability must be checked during any refurbishment.

The requirements for structurally sound mounting of the bucket to secure its attachment to the boom..

More Than Boom Lift Safety: The Critical Assessment Of The Abilities Of A Repair Facility For The Most Important Fixup You'll Ever Do

So what capabilities are needed for the entity that can safely complete a bucket truck lift repair? Here are some of the key ones to look for:

Is there any way of verifying that they currently have the full level and type of liability insurance that is specifically underwritten for the risks associated with bucket truck lift repair area?

It is important that those who actually do the work, they should have the proper training and carry the proper certifications. A notable source for this type of accreditation is known as the CCT certification of the American Composites Manufacturing Association.

There are other steps that should be taken, if one was serious about this potential problem. A competent selection process for any supplying repair/restoration vendor of this type should also cover:

Aerial man lifts are a very specialized subset of the fiberglass products industry. Experience and knowledge of this applicaiton are critical.

In addition to maintaining physical integrity, after a repair has been made, a final electrical insulation test should be performed to ensure that the refurbishment process has not also created a literal and figurative potential for dangerous circuit completion that could effect the operator. (For situations relating specifically to Boom Lift Safety, a consultation with those in your organization who purchased your aerial lift products are a good idea to gain their perspective on this important checking phase.)

Moving Away From Boom Lift Safety: How Repairs Can And Should Unfold
Look here to see how this might play out.

No Obvious Damage, Now What?

Your local fiberglass rehab supplier is contacted. They have in their shop an upper boom in fairly good condition for surface refinishing and rehabilitation. Here are the steps:
1. The first thing that should be done is to visually examine the boom for any evidence of damage. Any such evidence should be compared with boom damage criteria shown in the OEM manual.
2. If the boom is dirty inside, the shop should call and ask to pressure wash the inside. The boom should then be dielectrically tested . If there is a dielectric problem, the boom should be analyzed with a conductivity tester to identify the problem. If the analysis reveals a problem, the company should call the owner.
3. If there is nothing else on the repair agenda, the boom should be cosmetically repaired and refinished as needed.
4. Then, the boom should be dielectrically tested again and structurally tested. If no flaws are found, the boom should be waxed properly to help shed water and dirt, to ensure its insulating effect, and shipped back to the owner. The final phase is creating some type of secure package in which it is placed .

Here Is A Time When More Care Is Needed From The Very Beginning,

Looking once more at the uppermost member of a structural support boom. It has fractures that have been flagged in the field and also are confirmed by an initial visual inspection. There is usually a cosmetic and visual coating on the boom itself. This protective layer should be stripped off and a full end to end inspection made both on the outside, and also on the hollow inner core of the boom itself. At this point the potential harm from the fissures need to be determined if they can be repaired and the boom restored to full and safe operation. This is done by consulting what the manufacturer has declared proper, and also comparing the damage to the capabilities of the repair materials. These typically include physical reinforcement, using similar OEM products and suitable bonding materials which are impregnated into the repair base. There will be a suitable timeframe for these materials to setup and reach their full operational resistance and use. At that point in time, a full mechanical stress/tension test needs to be performed at over the rated loading for the boom section. This must be done on calibrated equipment that can be shown to measure and record the amount of loading placed on the repaired member. Appropriate electrical testing would follow the same pattern, but this would most likely be done after surface finishing or layers are restored. Full documentation needs to accompany the device back to its owner/user.

Potentially Unfortunate Outcomes

There are not a lot of backup systems with a bucket style lift mechanism, and that goes double with the attachment of the boom to the bucket itself. In this case:

The main attachment was accomplished through threaded rods that are in effect integrated into the side of the bucket.

From a visual inspection, it was clear that there were fissures in the fiberglass layering that surrounded and supported these mounting rods.

Without even checking further it is apparent that no amount of reinforcement would make for a safe operating position.

This One Involves The Fiberglass Mounting Holes Themselves

Here is how this encounter unfolded:

1. A bucket is received for repair. It mounts to the lift arm via a section of the bucket in which a covering material made of glass fibers in resins creates a housing for the connecting hardware.
2. An initial examination of the mounting holes in the ribs reveals that there are cracks in the ribs.
3. The bucket probably should not be repaired

A Bucket Or Similar Item For Repair That Has Cosmetic Damage

Now that we have created circumstances where critical repairs should be made and/or where it is beyond being reasonable to move into that direction at all, a more normal state is when field use has not yet pushed the item out of its service range. It is very likely that this apparatus can be returned to many years of active service- depending of course upon the loading and general treatment of the restraint in the field. Communication with whomever sent the device in is appropriate . The key question is whether it is mainly restoring the holding capability of the bucket or in addition whether surfaces need to be put back to near OEM levels of feel and look. In this case, providing levels of pricing for each approach action is the appropriate response.

Tags: Boom Lift Safety