FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Laurie Weber, Executive Director
Scaffold Industry Association
laurie@scaffold.org
(816) 595.4860
SIA Releases Statement on
PI Equipment
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (April 15, 2011)—The Scaffold Industry
Association (SIA) has issued a statement on the industry consensus and
appropriate testing procedures of permanently installed building maintenance
and façade maintenance system components.
“To ensure user safety on this equipment, testing must be no
more than two times the rated load, or refer to the manufacturers’
recommendations. Load testing in excess of these recommended standards
causes safety and risk concerns. Building owners must recognize that testing
above the recommended loads creates additional structural impact which may not
be observed by the inspector. The safety and financial implications of this
damage, the replacement of the equipment and repair to structures are very
serious,” Laurie Weber, SIA executive director, said.
The statement was developed by the SIA’s Permanent
Installation Council. The council’s mission is to improve the knowledge of all
those involved with the design, construction, use, inspection, maintenance and
service of permanently installed suspended scaffolding.
To read the statement, visit the SIA website at www.scaffold.org/userfiles/file/Website%20statement.pdf
.
About the SIA
The Scaffold Industry Association (SIA) is a non-profit
trade 501(c)(6) association committed to raising the standards of
professionalism within the scaffold and access industry. The SIA represents all
facets of the scaffold & access industry through various councils that
include, aerial work platform, construction hoist, fall protection equipment,
international, industrial, mast climbing, plank and platform, supported
scaffold and suspended scaffold. Through its various programs, the SIA promotes
safety, training and a highly professional, responsible image of the scaffold
and access professional. The SIA delivers hundreds of safety training programs
a year at various locations throughout the world. These programs cover all
aspects of scaffold and access safety and equipment use. The SIA is also the
secretariat for the American National Standard, SIA ASC A92 standards. For more
information, call (816) 595.4860 or visit them at