Lifts, scaffolds and safety organization at the workplace

Large window sections, foyers with high ceilings, theatres and commercial buildings often require curtains, sun screens or textile cladding to be installed several metres above the floor. As soon as the work moves away from an ordinary ladder, the rules for lifts and scaffolding come into play — and they are not negotiable. Working at height is one of the task types in the trade where a shortcut can cost dearly.

§Lifts: requirements for the user

If you use a lift — for example a scissor lift or an articulating boom lift — to reach up high, you must be able to operate it safely and know its limitations: maximum load, working height and the bearing capacity of the substrate. The Labour Authority sets requirements that users of certain lift types must complete relevant training or instruction, and that there is always a clear plan for what happens if the lift fails or the person in the basket needs help.

§Rolling and folding scaffolding

For many assembly tasks, a rolling or cantilever scaffold is used instead. Here the Labour Inspection Authority sets specific training requirements: if you set up, modify or remove a rolling scaffold higher than 3 metres, you must have completed special rolling and cantilever scaffold training or be able to document equivalent qualifications. There must also always be instructions in Danish (or a language the users understand) describing permitted load and correct set-up, which are provided together with the necessary training and specific instruction for the current task.

• 01Rolling and folding scaffolding training is required when setting up/dismantling over 3 meters
• 02Instructions in a language users understand must be present
• 03Load, point load and installation method must follow the manufacturer's instructions
• 04Fall protection: who establishes and maintains railings/screens, and after which class (DS/EN 13374)?
• 05The scaffolding is inspected before it is used, and after wind or moving

§Safety organization on the building site

If you work as a site installer on a construction site or in a larger company, you will meet an occupational health and safety organization. According to the occupational health and safety law, companies with at least ten employees must have an occupational health and safety organization where the employer and an elected occupational health and safety representative work together to prevent accidents and wear and tear. On larger construction sites with multiple companies at the same time, there is also a requirement to coordinate safety across the different trades working side by side.

§Why it concerns you

You don't need to sit on the safety committee to be covered by it. As a residential fitter on a building site you have the right to be instructed in the site's safety rules, a duty to use the required safety equipment, and the right to refuse a task you assess as directly dangerous — for example, installation from non-approved scaffolding or without fall protection where required. Knowing the safety committee's role makes it easier to know who to turn to if something is wrong.

“The best assembly three metres high is the one that never makes it into the news as a work accident.”