Whether you’re keen on DIY or you’re a professional tradesman, you may well have heard the two terms ‘platform height’ and ‘working height’ being mentioned a lot in regards to mobile scaffolds. However, they’re not exactly the same thing, which can understandably lead to some confusion. It’s one of the more common queries we hear, so we’re taking a moment to set things straight. While these terms can both be used with regard to ladders, they’re most often used with respect to scaffold towers.
Platform Height
Essentially, the platform height is the height at which the platform can be raised – in other words, the distance between the platform and the ground.
Working Height
Meanwhile, the definition of working height is equated to the area that an average person can reach while standing on that platform.
In other words, an easier way to think of it is that when you’re standing on a scaffold, platform height refers to where your feet are while working height refers to where your maximum reach is. If you’re painting, your working height would be the highest you can reach with the paintbrush. You can see then, why platform height is always lower than working height.
Conclusion
Generally, Safe Working Height is based on a 2m height and reach of a person whilst standing on the highest level platform, if you need to go higher than that, you may think it looks possible but it definitely won’t be safe! There’s far too much of a risk that you’ll be unbalanced, which can lead to a very dramatic fall and potentially fatal fall from a height.
Light duty tasks that don’t require a great deal of strength – or which do for a very short duration – can be done at relatively high working heights, assuming of course that you’ve taken all the relevant steps to ensure complete safety while working at height. Meanwhile, heavier-duty tasks that require a lot of physical strength, dexterity, or coordination are best done closer to the ground, or in very short bursts. Becoming fatigued at height can lead to mistakes, which again can lead to accidents. For this reason, when planning a job it’s vital to ensure that you’ve got a scaffold that’s the right height for the job. Just before we finish off, we’ll look at a few practical examples. Our Aluminum Tower Scaffold details both the exact platform height as well as the average working height for each variant, helping you to make an informed decision on which tower is best for your needs. At Solid Scaffold, we’ve developed a range of products designed for both home and professional use – you can browse our scaffold towers here, or give us a call on +86-0662-3308161 or send a message to our email solid@solidscaffold.com if you have any further questions or queries. We are here to help!
