SAIA Makes Statement on LVL Scaffold Planks in California

3/21/2012

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Laurie Weber, Executive Director
Scaffold & Access Industry Association
laurie@saiaonline.org
(816) 595.4860

SAIA Makes Statement on LVL Scaffold Planks in California

Recent revisions to section 1637 of Cal-OSHA have given rise to issues pertaining to the compliance of certain LVL scaffold planks. These issues have been brought to the attention of the SAIA Platform Council and a position statement has been deemed warranted in an effort to provide clarification.

In 2010, Cal-OSHA adopted a revision to section 1637 that included the following verbiage in sub-section C.4:

Prior to being placed in service, all laminated veneer lumber scaffold planks, manufactured after December 2, 2010 shall be labeled with the seal of an independent, nationally recognized, inspection agency approved by the International Accreditation Services (IAS) certifying compliance with ASTM D 5456-09a and ANSI/ASSE A10.8-2001, Section 5.2.10.

Note: ASTM D 5456-09a is the standard for the evaluation of structural composite lumber products. ANSI/ASSE A10.8-2001, Section 5.2.10. requires the inspection agency to certify that laminated veneer lumber scaffold planks are compliant with the design criteria in the ANSI/ASSE A10.8 standard.

The intent of this revision was to improve upon requirements for product quality and third-party verification of LVL scaffold planks. The verbiage of this requirement was considered and selected by SAIA, OSHA representatives and other industry experts.

While this requirement is clear for some LVL scaffold planks, it is unclear for LVL scaffold planks that are “produced” by secondary mills who do not themselves produce the LVL. It is the business model of some LVL scaffold plank manufacturers to purchase LVL “candidate stock” as raw material from one or more manufacturers of LVL, and reprocess this LVL candidate stock into scaffold planks. This may include physical processes such as ripping to finished width, cutting to length, proof-testing, easing edges, and embossing sides. This also includes the requirements to establish properties for flat-use in accordance with OSHA capacity and deflection requirements, provide literature traceable to the product reflecting these properties and other manufacturer recommendations on proper use, inspection, etc.

Under the scenario described above, the following questions should be considered in providing adequate material traceability and labeling. For each question, the Plank & Platform Council of the SAIA provides the following recommendations (printed in italics):

Which mill numbers are required to trace back an individual scaffold plank to a single mill source?

Mill numbers should be provided as needed to identify the LVL back to a single mill source for both the LVL manufacturer and the scaffold plank manufacturer. In the scenario where a single LVL mill source is utilized, a single mill source claim may be adequate to identify both the LVL manufacturing mill and the scaffold plank manufacturer. In the scenario where multiple LVL mill sources are utilized, it is the opinion of SAIA Platform Counsel that the mill numbers for both the LVL manufacturer and the scaffold plank manufacturer should be identified, to ensure traceability is not compromised.

Which third-party seals are required to certify compliance with ASTM D5456 and ANSI A10.8?

Third-party agency seals should be provided as needed to certify compliance with both the requirements of ASTM D5456 and the capacity requirements of ANSI A10.8. In the scenario where a single third-party seal is shown on the plank, this seal indicates the third-party certification of both standards. In other instances where two third-party seals are used (one for the LVL manufacturer, and one for the scaffold plank manufacturer), it should be clearly indicated on the plank and/or literature to which mill each third-party seal pertains. In either case, it is the responsibility of the scaffold plank manufacturer and their third-party certification agency to have contained within their quality management system assurance that all incoming raw materials meet the ASTM D5456 requirements, and that all finished scaffold planks meet the ANSI A10.8 capacity requirements.

What additional marks are required to meet the marking and traceability requirements of ASTM D5456 and ANSI A10.8?

No additional marks are required in ANSI A10.8. ASTM D5456 states that finished product marking from the LVL manufacturing facility shall be defined within the Manufacturing Standard approved by the third-party agency. The following marks are typically required for structural LVL products: manufacturer name and/or logo, inspection agency name and/or logo, plant number, production date, product type, and product grade. It is recommended that any LVL manufacturer of candidate stock supplied to a scaffold plank manufacturer include all of these marks on each piece of candidate stock.

How are the capacity requirements of ANSI A10.8 met?

Under the scenario where multiple LVL sources and/or grades are used as raw materials for scaffold planks, each should be qualified and evaluated independently against the capacity requirements of ANSI A10.8.

Was the LVL produced in North America?

Under any scenario where the scaffold plank manufacturer is procuring LVL from one or more mills from outside of North America, they should not make any claims that the product is manufactured in North America.

Is the plank produced under a Quality Management System?

Under any scenario where a Quality Management System does not cover both the manufacture of the LVL and the manufacture of the scaffold plank, no claims should be made regarding the Quality Management System used.

It is important to note that this process can be done correctly and incorrectly for both a single step producer or a two step producer. Just because a product is labeled or claimed to adhere to the mandatory standards does not necessarily mean compliance. It may also be possible to provide traceability of production information without incorporating some of the markings discussed in this document provided that an integrated inventory control and Quality Management System exists between all parties in the supply chain. It is the responsibility of the user to discuss the manufacturer’s quality control and third party audit processes to confirm that the proper steps are being taken to produce safe and compliant plank.

The questions that have been addressed in this position statement have not been covered in any previous documents by the Plank & Platform Council of the SAIA. This council will review their “Engineered Wood Scaffold Plank Purchasing Guidelines” in 2012 and address this topic.

About the SAIA
The Scaffold & Access Industry Association (SAIA) is a non-profit trade 501(c)(6) association committed to raising the standards of professionalism within the scaffold and access industry. The SAIA 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 SAIA promotes safety, training and a highly professional, responsible image of the scaffold and access professional. The SAIA 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 SAIA is also the secretariat for the American National Standard, SAIA ASC A92 standards. For more information, call (816) 595.4860 or visit them at www.saiaonline.org.

SAIA Confirms 2012 Committee Week a Success

3/1/2012

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Laurie Weber, Executive Director
Scaffold & Access Industry Association
laurie@saiaonline.org
(816) 595.4860

SAIA Confirms 2012 Committee Week a Success

Feb. 28, 2012, Kansas City − The Scaffold & Access Industry Association (SAIA) Executive Committee, Board of Directors and councils met last week in Weston, Florida at the 2012 Committee Week event.

Committee Week is SAIA’s mid-year meeting in which 10 councils meet to work on current projects, discuss issues facing their council’s segment in the industry, evaluate their goals and objectives, and prepare for the upcoming year. Over four days, 113 key industry scaffold and access professionals came together to discuss collectively more than 80 agenda items unique to the scaffold and access industry.

“With today’s 24/7 communication tools, our volunteers now work on these projects year-round, but it’s great to see everyone get together and put the finishing touches to the programs face-to-face,” commented Steve Smith, President of SAIA.

Several new projects were completed and forwarded to the SAIA review committee for approval to produce new training tools.

The Plank & Platform Council, under the leadership of Colby Hubler (Mill Direct) submitted Scaffold Plank Identification and Inspection. This new project will be a downloadable PDF to help all users of scaffold plank to identify mandatory and non-mandatory requirements of all types of plank by outlining industry standards, best practices and detailed media. Additionally, the PDF entails a product specific inspection process for used plank along with a SAIA recommended action for each type of damage. All solid sawn, engineered wood, metal and composite planks and decks are included in this project.

Construction Hoist Council chair, Paula Manning (Century Elevators), finalized the Code of Safe Practices for Construction Elevators. This project will expand the SAIA portfolio for its Code of Safe Practices series. These guidelines were designed to promote safety in the erection, dismantle, operation and use of construction hoists. Each Code of Safe Practices is designed for job site posting and as an easy reference guide.

The Aerial Work Platform (AWP) OSHA alliance focus group finalized eight new safety-tip projects that will address industry issues such as selection of proper AWP’s for a job, developing an AWP rescue plan, and implementing an AWP fall-protection system. Additionally the council agreed to move forward with introducing an SAIA booms-and scissors-training program with proper approval.

Additionally, the Executive Committee and Board of Directors agreed to move forward with a relationship with Lift & Access magazine. The SAIA and Lift & Access will develop an agenda to co-locate and unite the 2013 SAIA Annual Convention & Exposition and the Lift & Access SAF-T Symposium to be held in July 2013.

During the Board of Directors meeting the 2012-2014 slate of officers was approved. The new officers will be sworn in at the 2012 Annual Convention & Exposition in Huntington Beach, Calif., in July.

President: Marty Coughlin, Dependable Scaffolding, LLC
President Elect: Mike Russell, Power Climber Wind
Vice President: Jeff Stachowiak, Sunbelt Rentals
Treasurer: Colby Hubler, Mill Direct
Secretary: Paula Manning, Century Elevators
Presidential Appointee: Marc Wilson, Safway Services
Board Appointee: Frank Frietsch, Layher Inc.
Board Appointee: James Gordon, Klimer Platforms

The SAIA would also like to thank all of our 2012 Committee Week Sponsors. Layher, Strong Man Building Products, STVA, Stepup Scaffold, Networx Communication, Direct Scaffold Supply, Edge International, Mdm Scaffolding Service, William and Gail Ayers and Harold and Jo Elen Gidish.

For more information about 2012 Committee Week or other SAIA projects currently in the works, please call SAIA headquarters at 816.595.4860.

About Lift & Access
Lift and AccessMagazine provides comprehensive coverage of the entire lifting equipment marketplace. Each issue of Lift and Access analyzes new technologies, discusses industry trends, and reviews unique applications. Our coverage goes beyond equipment introductions. It provides an in depth look at the advanced engineering, components, and ancillary products that further enhance the products’ usage and safety. In addition to construction and equipment rental, Lift and Access extends its mission to the overhead utility market and fleet procurement managers respectively through its Telecom & Utility Construction and Components & Consumables supplements. Both products look deeper into these specific lifting equipment sectors, providing in-depth product information to industry professionals. Reaching more than 24,000 professionals each regular issueLift and Access is the most widely read publication devoted to all aspects of the North American lifting industry.Our editors rely on their extensive experience with lifting equipment—more than 90 years combined—to offer articles that are both timely and practical to help general and specialty contractors, equipment rental centers and equipment dealers.

2012 Annual Convention & Exposition Call for Speakers

1/4/2012

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Laurie Weber, Executive Director
Scaffold & Access Industry Association
laurie@saiaonline.org(816) 595.4860

The Scaffold & Access Industry Association (SAIA) is holding an open “Call for Speakers” for the 2012 Annual Convention & Exposition. The meeting will be held July 15-18, 2012 in Huntington Beach, CA

The SAIA is looking for speakers for the Annual Convention & Exposition. The key to continued success for our members is to provide top of the line education and training at the Annual Convention & Exposition. Let’s make this year’s presentations the best we have seen yet! Submit your presentation today, and help provide a lasting impact on your fellow SAIA members.

Currently the SAIA is comprised of 10 active councils. Each council represents a particular niche of the scaffolding and access industry. The councils are responsible for the development and implementation of affairs consistent with the products and/or services applicable to each council. Councils are tasked with the oversight of regulatory/ jurisdictional safety concerns and specific industry issues relative to each established council.

Click here to submit your speaker topics now!

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If you have any questions please feel free to call SAIA at (816) 595.4860 or contact them by email at info@saiaonline.org.

Commercial, Manufacturing Construction-Bright Spots in 2012

12/19/2011

Commercial, Manufacturing Construction Are Bright Spots in 2012

Overall, U.S. construction starts for 2012 will remain essentially flat, and the level of construction starts is expected to be $412 billion, following the 4 percent decline to $410 billion predicted for 2011, according to McGraw-Hill Construction (New York) in its annual construction forecast for 2012.

The construction industry has struggled to see recovery take hold over the past couple of years. After plunging 24 percent in 2009, new construction starts leveled off in 2010 and have hovered within a set range during 2011, said Robert Murray, vice president of economic affairs, McGraw-Hill Construction.

“The backdrop for the construction industry is the fragile U.S. economy, which continues to see slow employment growth, diminished funding from federal and state governments and pervasive uncertainty,” Murray added. “In 2012, the top-line numbers are not expected to show much change, but there will be variation within the major construction sectors with some gains predicted for housing and commercial building—assuming the U.S. economy avoids recession.” Based on significant research and in-depth analysis of macro-trends, the 2012 Dodge Construction Outlook details the forecasts for nonresidential construction sectors as follows:

Commercial building will grow 8 percent. Warehouses and hotels will see the largest percentage increases, but improvement for offices and stores will be modest.
The institutional building market will slip an additional 2 percent in 2012, after falling 15 percent in 2011. The tough fiscal environment for states and localities will continue to dampen school construction, and the uncertain economic environment will limit growth in health-care facilities.
Manufacturing buildings will increase 4 percent, following the 35 percent gain in 2011, as the low value of the U.S. dollar continues to support export growth.
Public works construction will drop a further 5 percent, after a 16 percent decline in 2011, due to spending cuts and the absence of a multiyear federal transportation bill for highway and bridge construction.
Electric utilities will retreat 24 percent, following a 48 percent jump in 2011.

Ready. Fire. Aim: Changing up your business plan this year

12/19/2011

A SPECIAL REPORT FROM SCAFFOLD & ACCESS MAGAZINE:

Ready. Fire. Aim.
Plan to change up your business plan this year? Set your sights on partner/customer needs before you pull the trigger.

By George F. Brown Jr.

As businesses look toward 2012, many are developing ambitious plans to achieve their growth and profit goals. In conversations with many organizations, I hear of four themes that are included in many of these plans: globalization, solutions orientation, acquisitions and investments, and sustainability.

Globalization. While globalization has been going on for quite a few years, many firms are planning to elevate activity levels a few notches. They know that most of the growth in their markets will take place in countries such as China and India. They also recognize that new competition from abroad is emerging in their traditional home markets. Responding to both the opportunity and the challenge is a 2012 priority across industry after industry.

Solutions orientation. Many firms design initiatives to enable them to evolve from “selling a product” to “becoming a solutions provider.” They will orient such initiatives toward stopping the commoditization that has been occurring in many of their product lines, with its adverse implications on prices and margins. Initiatives in this category often involve new service offerings and require a much closer set of relationships with customers.

Acquisitions and investments. Responding in part to the strong balance sheet many firms have developed since the 2008-09 recession, many firms are actively pursuing interesting opportunities for acquisitions and investments. The acquisition concepts will be ones that will create headroom for growth by expanding into adjacent product and market spaces. Companies will base many internal investments on opportunities associated with new technologies, such as the cloud and social networking, and others will respond to current-day challenges, such as security of the supply chain and information vulnerability.

Sustainability. This topic has been around for some time, but changes are taking place. Companies are now viewing sustainability as an economic concept. If you can use fewer resources or shift to lessexpensive resources, you can improve your bottom line. This gets the attention of the P&L managers within the firm.

An obvious aspect you could easily overlook
All of these initiatives are responsive to the business environment of 2012. And all of them will pose major challenges for the firms that will be implementing them. In quite fundamental ways, initiatives within these categories will require changes to core elements of the business models of the firms that include them in their 2012 plans.

In my research on implementing changes to a firm’s business model, I’ve seen over and over that successful firms think about their external relationships as part of their “Get-to-Market Plans.” These best-practice firms emphasize the importance of getting input from customers about changes they are contemplating. But the source of valuable insight doesn’t stop with customers. For many businesses, supplier ingredients account for a significant portion of their product’s value. And sales-channel partners—dealers, distributors, wholesalers, integrators, contractors and others—often provide key services that are critical to end-customer satisfaction with these same products.

Anyone who is an avid reader of business literature would conclude that the points in the above paragraph are now so obvious that the appropriate response of a reader should be, “Duh!” But, sadly, obvious doesn’t yet seem to translate into action in far too many instances. While not connected to the 2012 initiatives described above, I recently heard the following story from an executive in a firm that specializes in high-technology instruments:

“Our plan was to lower our overall cost by outsourcing design and manufacturing to suppliers in various low-cost countries. The potential for cost savings was real, but our plan had unintended consequences. In retrospect, we did not understand the value proposition that had previously allowed us to succeed with our customers. In the past, by manufacturing and designing the product ourselves, we ensured the design and quality of the products met our customers’ requirements.”

After this firm implemented the change to their business model, the companies to which it had outsourced responsibilities for this product line made substitutions and design changes. Many of these changes were immediately visible to the firm’s customers. As a result, their customers soon concluded that this company no longer provided the value that the customers considered to be most important. Some customers even recognized that they could easily purchase a similar product directly from the same offshore suppliers, with minimal resources or risk on their part.
The lesson cited by the executive who provided this case study was simple. In his words:

“We learned that business-model changes always impact in many ways. A too-narrow focus, in this case on the costs of design and manufacturing, can yield adverse outcomes when the other impacts begin to surface. The team that, in this case, saw the potential for cost savings on this product line failed to understand what had been valued by the customers who bought it. A significant level of business was lost as a result. The summary is simple: We failed to reach out to our customers and hear their inputs before we implemented this plan.”

Bad experiences abound
The previously mentioned executive’s story is all too frequent. In another case study, a business owner provided a postmortem to a failed initiative with the following comment:

“Getting our customers and key business partners on board was obvious in retrospect. But we never included doing so in the implementation plan, and our implementation project took six months longer than we had expected, as we had to bring them on board on an ‘afterthought’ basis.”

Experience after experience suggests that there are few times when a change in strategy or in a firm’s business model doesn’t ripple through to impact customers and key third-party business partners.

Involving customers and key business partners is not just about avoiding clashes, although clashes can occur anytime a firm pulls a surprise on its key customers, suppliers and sales-channel partners. The task involves ensuring that processes link correctly when they have to do so. It involves making sure that each party to a business relationship understands its own roles and responsibilities. It involves making sure the two firms are interacting often enough and at the right places to get ahead of problems and opportunities. It involves making sure that discussions are focused on the future, not looking in the rear-view mirror.

Mike DeLano, executive vice president of Mitsubishi Electric Automotive America (Mason, Ohio), said that when implementation success required collaboration from third-party organizations (customers, suppliers, channel partners), the best approach was “to bring them clearly defined changes that are sure to work.” But, even then, he said that if you were going to ask them to spend more or redirect resources or change their processes, you have to have a compelling benefits statement and be ready to sell, sell, sell. Doing so requires a careful examination of the strategy and implementation plan from the vantage of your business partner’s perspective. Will the steps you are asking your customers or supplier or sales-channel partner to take make sense in terms of their own business models and bottom lines? If not, expect an uphill battle.

Get input early—very early
One other dimension you should heed to this lesson on involvement of key third-party organizations: Involve them in implementation planning, not just in the implementation plans. Over and over, we’ve seen examples when customers, suppliers, or sales-channel partners spot an issue in the implementation plan or suggest a shortcut that can save time and money. Many times, the vantage point of these business partners provides a perspective that isn’t obvious to those in your own firm. Take advantage of their experience and insights. After all, they share a stake in the success of your plans. One of the things we’ve learned is that strong leaders of implementation projects carefully think about the impacts of their plans on their firm’s customers and business partners. Then they bring them into the process and make sure both parties are aligned. The insights that can come from such conversations can ensure that your plans are well-aimed before you decide to fire.

About the author
George F. Brown Jr. is the CEO and cofounder of Blue Canyon Partners Inc. (Chicago), a strategy consulting firm working with leading business suppliers on growth strategy. Contact him by visiting www.bluecanyonpartners.com.

Also see: Commercial, Manufacturing Construction Are Bright Spots in 2012

SAIA ASC A92 Approves Three New Sub-Committees

10/31/2011

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Laurie Weber, Executive Director
Scaffold & Access Industry Association
laurie@saiaonline.org
(816) 595.4860

SAIA ASC A92 Approves Three New Sub-Committees

October 31, 2011, Kansas City − The Scaffold & Access Industry Association (SAIA) A92 members voted and approved three new sub-committees in Las Vegas at their 2011 Annual Meeting.

A92.20 - Design of manually propelled, self-propelled and boom supported aerial work platforms and under bridge vehicle, mounted inspection work platforms.

A92.22 - Safe use of manually propelled, self-propelled and boom supported aerial work platforms and under bridge vehicle mounted inspection work platforms.

A92.24 – Training to operate, inspect and maintain manually propelled, self-propelled and boom supported aerial work platforms and under bridge vehicle mounted inspection work platforms.

Effective immediately the A92 main committee is accepting applications for individuals to join the new sub-committees.

Brent Hoover, JLG Industries was appointed as the A92.20 chairman, Brad Boehler, Skyjack Inc. was appointed as the A92.22 chairman, and Frank Bonesteel, New York State Department of Transportation was appointed as the A92.24 chairman.

The newly formed sub-committees will begin work in January 2012. All applications considered for sub-committee membership must be received by Monday, November 21, 2011. All applications received by November 21, 2011 will be voted on and approvals announced by December 31, 2011.

Please visit http://www.saiaonline.org/userfiles/file/ANSI%20committee%20application%281%29.pdfto download the application. For more information you may contact SAIA headquarters at (816) 595.4860 or by e-mail at lance@saiaonline.org.

About the SAIA
The Scaffold & Access Industry Association (SAIA) is a non-profit trade 501(c)(6) association committed to raising the standards of professionalism within the scaffold and access industry. The SAIA 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 SAIA promotes safety, training and a highly professional, responsible image of the scaffold and access professional. The SAIA 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 SAIA is also the secretariat for the American National Standard, SAIA ASC A92 standards. For more information, call (816) 595.4860 or visit them at www.saiaonline.org.

About SAIA ASC A92
The Scaffold & Access Industry Association is one of over 220 American National Standard Institute (ANSI)-Accredited Standards Developers that develop American National Standards. The SAIA serves as Secretariat for the A92 – Aerial Platforms series of standards. The SAIA is responsible for adhering to the policies and procedures outlined in the ANSI Essential Requirements, which govern the consensus development process. The ASC A92 Main Committee consists of 71 member companies and organizations who have been appointed based on their technical, safety, and related industrial expertise. The committee meets annually to review current issues, establish policy and procedures relative to the consensus standards, and evaluate the development activities of each subcommittee. For more information, call (816) 595.4860 or visit http://www.saiaonline.org/A92

SAIA Highlighted in August 29th issue of ENR

9/6/2011

The Scaffold & Access Industry Association was highlighted in the August 29^th issue of ENR, Engineering-News Record.

Please take a moment to review the section it at http://www.zinio.com/reader.jsp?issue=416186536&o=ext

Thank you to the following members for supporting our effort.

AWPT
Excel Modular Scaffold System
Panaseas
PCI Scaffold Concepts
Strongman Building Products
STVA
XS Platform

We asked ENR if they were satisfied with the outcome of the Scaffold & Access section. Joan Callahan responded, “We are very pleased with the section. And for the most part, the majority of the advertisers were new to the section. We will send out information in the next month of so on next year’s section—hopefully we’ll get in a few 2012 budgets early and give SAIA more editorial coverage.”

SIA Members Approve Name Change

7/21/2011

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Laurie Weber, Executive Director
Scaffold Industry Association
laurie@scaffold.org(816) 595.4860

SIA Members Approve Name Change

July 19, 2011, Minneapolis − The Scaffold Industry Association (SIA) members approved a name change for their association. Effective Oct. 1, 2011, the association will be called the Scaffold & Access Industry Association (SAIA).

“It may take some time for the new name to become second nature, and the acronym SAIA may not roll off the tongue quite as easily as SIA, but give it time. It took many years for the original name to be recognized countrywide and around the globe,” said Steve Smith, SIA president.

Discussion about the name change took place during the SIA Executive Board meetings in June and the final decision was made at the SIA’s general membership meeting yesterday (July 18). The move passed by an overwhelming majority of SIA Convention and Exposition attendees.

The name change exemplifies the association’s brand as the voice of the scaffold and access industry.

For more information you may contact SIA headquarters at (816) 595.4860 or by e-mail at info@scaffold.org.

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 www.scaffold.org.

OSHA Issues Hazard Alert

7/6/2011

OSHA issues hazard alert on the dangers of using scissor lifts to film events

WASHINGTON – The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) today issued a hazard alert about the dangers of using scissor lifts to film events and functions. Scissor lifts are portable, hydraulic-powered lifts that are commonly used by colleges and high schools to film athletic and band activities.

Last October, a 20-year-old University of Notre Dame student employee was killed while filming the team’s football practice from a scissor lift that was blown over by high winds. The worker, who reportedly was not trained to properly operate the equipment, raised the lift more than 39 feet into the air on a day in which winds exceeded 50 miles per hour.

The alert lists hazards associated with scissor lifts such as using the equipment during high winds or bad weather; overloading the equipment with heavy objects; removing the guardrails during operation; and driving the lift on uneven or unstable ground.

Employers can minimize scissor lift hazards by establishing safe work practices, including inspecting the lift before use; safely moving, positioning, and stabilizing the lift; selecting safe work locations; and identifying weather conditions that prevent use. Additional key safety practices include putting the scissor lift on a firm level surface, setting brakes and stabilizing the lift before raising it, and maintaining a 10 foot clearance from electrical power sources and overhead hazards such as tree branches.

Hazards can be further reduced by training workers on how to operate scissor lifts safely, making sure that the scissor lift has a guardrail system for fall protection, and operating and maintaining the lift according to the manufacturer’s recommendations.

OSHA’s Scaffolding eTool and Safety and Health Topics page on Scaffolding provide additional guidance on the hazards and requirements for using scissor lifts. OSHA also provides free On-Site Consultation for small business employers who want to create or improve their safety and health management systems. Employers can visit OSHA’s Web site to find the closest OSHA Consultation Office or call 1-800-321-6742. Additionally, local OSHA offices also have Compliance Assistance Specialists who can provide employers with information about the agency’s standards and compliance assistance resources. Additional information on Workers’ Rights and Employer Responsibilities is available on OSHA’s Workers Page.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA’s role is to ensure these conditions for America’s working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.

OSHA renews Alliance with Scaffold Industry Association

6/29/2011

OSHA renews Alliance with Scaffold Industry Association

WASHINGTON– The Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) today renewed its Alliance with the Scaffold Industry Association Inc.(SIA) that aims to protect the safety and health of workers who work on scaffolds from falls and other deadly hazards.

“The materials developed through our Alliance are valuable resources for training and educating workers on the hazards they can face in their jobs and how they can be prevented,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Dr. David Michaels. “Four of the ten most frequently cited OSHA construction standards involve scaffolding, so renewing this Alliance is a great opportunity to build on our work to better protect the men and women who work on scaffolds.”

Since the nationwide Alliance was first signed in 2008, OSHA and SIA have developed Transport Platforms and Mast Climbing Work Platforms safety materials relating to scaffold and fall hazards, as well as applicable American National Safety Institute (ANSI) consensus standards. Several of these products have been translated into Spanish and Portuguese.

Goals of the renewed Alliance include increasing awareness of OSHA’s rulemaking and enforcement initiatives, developing new effective training and education programs, and conducting outreach and communication activities on workers’ rights and employers’ responsibilities. The organizations will continue to emphasize scaffold safety, including issues related to mast climbing scaffolding, suspended scaffolding, and aerial lift equipment.

SIA is a national trade organization, founded in 1972, that represents the scaffold, aerial lift and access industry. SIA promotes safety in these areas by developing educational and training courses, audiovisual programs, and codes of safe practices. It has over 1,000 member companies including aerial platform dealers and distributors; scaffold and shoring erectors and renters; plank and platform manufacturers and distributors; safety and engineering consultants; and government officials.

Through the Alliance Program, OSHA works with groups committed to worker safety and health to prevent workplace fatalities, injuries and illnesses. These groups include unions, consulates, trade or professional organizations, faith- and community-based organizations, businesses and educational institutions. OSHA and the groups work together to develop compliance assistance tools and resources, share information with workers and employers, and educate workers and employers about their rights and responsibilities. Alliance Program participants do not receive exemptions from OSHA programmed inspections.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA’s role is to assure these conditions for America’s working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.

SIA Welcomes New Team Member!

6/6/2011

Welcome DeAnna Martin!

The SIA would like to introduce our newest team member DeAnna Martin. DeAnna has been in the customer service business for more than 12 years. She brings accounting, financial and managerial expertise to the SIA. She is taking over the position of operations administrator.

DeAnna grew up in a small town in northwestern Missouri. In her recent job, she worked as a contractor for the Department of Homeland Security. While working there, she met her future husband, Beau. Married in October 2010, the couple moved to Kansas City, Mo., where they now reside with their two pets.

In her spare time, she enjoys camping, fishing, reading, watching her favorite sports teams and traveling with her husband.

DeAnna is excited about the opportunities and new environment with the SIA. She looks forward to working with the membership and being a part of the SIA team.

She’ll be attending her first SIA Annual Convention & Exposition this July in Minneapolis. She is eager to meet the SIA membership, so don’t be a stranger and stop by to say “hello!”

If you have any invoice questions, product order needs or general membership inquiries, contact DeAnna at deanna@scaffold.orgor 816.595.4831.

Welcome to the team, DeAnna!

SIA Releases Statement on PI Equipment

4/15/2011

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Laurie Weber, Executive Director
Scaffold Industry Association
laurie@scaffold.org (816) 595.4860

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 recommendedstandards cause 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 www.scaffold.org.

US Labor Department fall protection directive upheld in US C

4/14/2011

US Labor Department fall protection directive upheld in US Court of Appeals

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit rejected a challenge by the National Roofing Contractors Association to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s December 2010 directive on the use of fall protection in residential construction. The directive withdrew an earlier one that allowed certain residential construction employers to bypass some fall protection requirements.

“Fall protection saves lives,” said OSHA Assistant Secretary Dr. David Michaels. “There are effective means available to protect residential construction workers from falls. We applaud the court’s decision upholding this updated, commonsense directive.”

Data from the department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that an average of 40 workers are killed each year as a result of falls from residential roofs. One-third of those deaths represent Latino workers, who often lack sufficient access to safety information and protections. Latino workers comprise more than one-third of all construction employees.

“Fatalities from falls are the number one cause of death in construction,” added Michaels. “These deaths are preventable, and we must prevent them.”

OSHA’s new directive, Standard 03-11-002, rescinded the Interim Fall Protection Compliance Guidelines for Residential Construction, Standard 03-00-001. Prior to the issuance of this new directive, Standard 03-00-001 allowed employers engaged in certain residential construction activities to use specified alternative methods of fall protection rather than the conventional fall protection required by the residential construction fall protection standard. With the issuance of the new directive, all residential construction employers must comply with 29 Code of Federal Regulations 1926.501(b)(13). Where residential builders can demonstrate that traditional fall protection is not feasible, 29 CFR 1926.501(b)(13) still allows for alternative means of providing protection.

The case was litigated by Lauren Goodman and Heather Phillips from the Division of Occupational Safety and Health in the department’s Office of the Solicitor.

Construction and roofing companies have until June 16 to comply with the new directive. OSHA has developed training and compliance assistance materials for small employers and will host a webinar for parties interested in learning more about complying with the standard. To view the directive and for more information, visit http://www.osha.gov/doc/residential_fall_protection.html.

# # #

SIA Announces Annual Convention and Exposition

4/11/2011

KANSAS CITY, Mo.—The 39^thSIA Annual Convention and Exposition will take place July 17-20 at the Hyatt Regency Minneapolis, 1300 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis, Minn., 55403.

The conference is the one of the largest gatherings of scaffold and access professionals within the entire industry. It features scaffold- and access-focused educational sessions and showcases the nation’s top scaffold and access exhibitors.

The conference will cover topics relevant to the scaffold and access industry and its segments. Some of the planned educational topics include roof top hazards and anchors for suspended scaffolds, safety preparations for building maintenance at heights, what an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Compliance Officer sees and looks for on jobsite visits, operator’s responsibility for a pre-start inspection for aerial work platforms, the benefits of material hoists and platform, and more.

During the convention, the internationally- acclaimed SIA Training Program will offer four courses; Competent Person Training for Frame Scaffolds; Competent Person Training for Suspended Scaffolds; Operator Training for Mast Climbers; Train the Trainer Facilitator Skills Workshop. Each course is open to the general public.

For more information on the conference, visit www.scaffold.org/Annual.

American National Standards Institute Approves New Standard

3/14/2011

American National Standards Institute Approves New Standard

The Scaffold Industry Association announces approval of the new standard ANSI/SIA A92.9-2011 for Mast-Climbing Work Platforms.

ANSI/SIA A92.9-2011 for Mast-Climbing Work Platforms was approved by the ANSI Board of Standards Review on February 25, 2011. The standard will go into effective in the industry on August 4, 2011.

The SIA would like to thank members of the ASC A92 Main Committee and the A92.9 subcommittee of all the hard work, time, and dedication to developing a standard to ensure safe practices of mast-climbing work platforms.

Information about the sale of the document will be available soon and updates can be found at www.scaffold.org.

The SIA serves as an ANSI-Accredited Standards Developer for the A92 Aerial Work Platform series of standards. To learn more about the A92 series of publications, or other ANSI items, please contact Emily Bannwarth, A92 Secretariat, at (816) 595.4860 or emily@scaffold.org.

OSHA and Scaffold Industry Association Alliance Offer Safety

2/11/2011

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Laurie Weber, Executive Director
Scaffold Industry Association
laurie@scaffold.org (816) 595.4860

OSHA and Scaffold Industry Association Alliance Offer Safety Tips in Spanish

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Through the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and Scaffold Industry Association (SIA) Alliance, the Mast Climbing Work Platform (MCWP) Safety Tips and the Transport Platform (TP) Safety Tips are now available in Spanish.

"This translation addresses an immediate and growing need within the construction industry. Our intention is to continually translate our OSHA alliance products and SIA products in a variety of languages," said Laurie Weber, SIA executive director.

You may download the Spanish TP Safety Tips by clicking hereand the Spanish MCWP Safety Tips by clicking hereor you may contact SIA headquarters at (816) 595.4860 or by e-mail at info@scaffold.org for more information.

About the Mast Climbing Work Platform (MCWP) Safety Tips
Available in English, Portuguese, and Spanish, the Safety Tips are a tool designed to position personnel, along with their necessary tools and materials, to perform safe work on Mast Climbing equipment. For more information about the OSHA and SIA alliance product, please visit our official alliance page at http://scaffold.org/Content.asp?ID=8.

About the Transport Platform (TP) Safety Tips
Available in English, Portuguese, and Spanish, the Safety Tips are tools designed to education users on the correct way to perform work on Transport Platform equipment. For more information on this OSHA and SIA alliance product, please visit our official alliance page at http://scaffold.org/Content.asp?ID=8

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 industry. 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 the official SIA website at www.scaffold.org.

SIA Trains Attendees on Scaffold Safety at World of Concrete

2/4/2011

One of the goals of the Scaffold Industry Association (SIA) is to expand the current educational offerings and broaden the awareness of the curriculum. During the 2011 World of Concrete show, Jan. 17-21 in Las Vegas, the SIA accomplished this goal by acting as host to two classes and one presentation.

Historically, the World of Concrete offers more than 75 presentations and classes during its weeklong industry event. World of Concrete and its partners present most of these classes and presentations. And while the classes have always covered a broad range of topics, they did not typically address scaffold and access issues. The SIA began discussions with World of Concrete in late spring 2010 to bring a stronger scaffold and access presence to the annual event. As a result, attendees at the 2011 show were able to attend SIA Competent Person classes for the first time.

As part of that offering, the SIA presented its Competent Person class for frame scaffolds, instructed by Sean Johnson of Territorial Scaffold (Albuquerque, N.M.), to four students. David Johnson of Skyline Scaffold Inc. (Sacramento, Calif.) instructed a class of six in the Competent Person class for suspended scaffolds. Though the student numbers were low, the SIA was able to finally get in front of the World of Concrete audience and begin a relationship that can grow over the years. Students came from as close as Nevada and as far away as Africa to attend the classes. Bob Bailey of Restore Masonry (Chicago) said, “After all the years of rigging suspended scaffolds, I thought I knew it all. After taking the SIA class at the World of Concrete, I have learned so much more. Very educational. Never take what you do for granted.”

Additionally, the World of Concrete organizers selected the SIA to present a course during its numerous concurrent sessions. David Johnson presented a modified and condensed version of the SIA Scaffold User Hazard Awareness class. This reformatted class offered content addressing various scaffold safety hazards in a 75-minute presentation.

Overall, response from students, attendees and World of Concrete staff was very positive. The SIA is already looking into options to expand on its 2011 relationship and broaden its presence next year. Make plans now to participate in World of Concrete 2012, Jan. 23-27 in Las Vegas.

SIA announce Board of Directors

12/28/2010

Scaffold Industry Association Announces Board of Directors
Kansas City, MO – The Scaffold Industry Association (SIA) is pleased to announce the results of its 2010 election for the Board of Directors.

“Thank you in advance to all the members of the Board of Directors for their time, expertise, and experience working for the betterment of this industry. It is one thing to join an association, pay dues and attend meetings, but it is another to donate time to improve the association and ultimately help other members,” said Steve Smith, SIA President.

Region 1 - Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont
Zack Thomas, Seacoast Scaffold
Alan Kline, Lynn Ladder & Scaffolding Co. Inc.

Region 2 - New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands
Michael Paladino, Eagle Scaffolding Services Inc.
Jay Kinder, Strong Man Building Products Corp.
Christer Hogne, R & R Scaffolding

Region 3 - District of Columbia, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia,
West Virginia
Barney Hanna, American Platform & Scaffolding
Guy Bianchini, Superior Scaffold Services Inc.
Mike Bredl, Universal Manufacturing Corporation

Region 4 - Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina,
South Carolina, Tennessee
Kevin O’Shea, Mastclimbers, LLC
William Dement, Associated Scaffolding Company Inc.
Jim Holcomb, Crom Equipment Rentals Inc.
Mike Thompson, PCI Scaffold Concepts

Region 5 - Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin
Sue Votroubek, WACO
Dan Zarletti, Kenny Construction Company
Eric Ringstad, Prime Scaffold
Mike Erlandsen, Infinity Scaffold

Region 6 - Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas
Dylan Fulton, Excel Modular Scaffold and Leasing Corporation
Buck Gladden, Gladden Tags
Chris Moody, Brock Group
Frank Frietsch, Layher Inc.

Region 7 - Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska
Dwight Allenbaugh, A-1 Scaffold Manufacturing Inc.

Region 8 - Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Wyoming
Sherri Hartman, Colorado Scaffolding & Equipment Co. Inc.

Region 9 - Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada
Ron Camp, Atlas Sales Co. Inc.
Dave Schroder, Action Equipment & Co. Inc.
Linda McCurdy, Performance Swing Stage Inc.
Harold Gidish, H & E Equipment

Region 10 - Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington
Colby Hubler, Mill Direct Lumber Sales Inc.
Jeff Jack, Redbuilt, LLC

Region 11 - International
Francois Villeneuve, Fraco Products Ltd.
Jay Gordon, Klimer
Mario Bertran, Andamios Atlas SA

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 industry. 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.

SIA Releases Pocket Handbooks in Spanish

11/23/2010

The SIA is pleased to announce our pocket handbooks are now available in Spanish. Each handbook is designed to assist workers in the use of scaffolds, and is intended to support your overall training program.

We offer the following handbooks:

- Suspended Scaffold Pocket Handbook (Andamio Suspendido Manual del bolsillo)

- Solid Sawn Wood Scaffold Plank Pocket Handbook (Tablón de madera aserrado sólido del andamio)

- Laminated Veneer Lumber Handbook (Tablón laminado del andamio de la madera de construcción)

- Visual Inspection of Metal/Composite Scaffold Platforms (Inspeccion visual de las plataformas metal/compuestas de andamio)

Through the mission and objective of SIA, these handbooks, plus our entire line of products and resources, gives you the necessary tools to help your team perform safely and efficiently on the jobsite. Draw upon the expertise and experience of the SIA when it comes to your scaffold training and safety education! To order any of our resources, visit our online web store at www.scaffold.org/shop.

Scaffold Industry Association at World of Concrete

11/3/2010

The SIA is pleased to announce that we will hold several events during 2011 World of Concrete, January 17 – 21, 2011 in Las Vegas, NV. The SIA will exhibit again this year. We encourage you and your customers to stop by and see us in booth N1455, in the north hall.

Scaffolding Safety Experience
New to the SIA and World of Concrete we will host the Scaffolding Safety Experience. Presented by Masonry Construction magazine, attendees will walk through static scaffolding displays that will have common mistakes that are routinely seen on jobsites and cited by OSHA inspectors. Find these mistakes, interact and ask questions with inspectors, and get graded on how much you know about proper scaffolding guidelines. Following the grading, inspectors will escort you back through the site to explain what the violations are and help provide solutions to these issues.

This event will be held in the gold lot in front of the north hall starting Tuesday January 18 – Friday, January 21 during exhibit hall hours. Please look for more information in the coming weeks about an SIA member kickoff event that will be held on Monday, January 17.

Training Programs
In addition the SIA will host two of our international acclaimed training programs.
Tuesday, January 18 – SIA Competent Person Training – Frame Scaffold
Wednesday, January 19 – SIA Competent Person Training – Suspended Scaffold

SIA Host Hotel
While the World of Concrete is not an SIA event, a great number of our members attend this show. The SIA doesn’t have our own room block, but while making your arrangements we’re encouraging members to stay at the MGM Grand. This will give our members an opportunity to network with each other during the week.

Again, we are excited to offer these new events at World of Concrete. If you are in Vegas, we hope to see you!

SIA Host ASC A92 Aerial Platforms Committee Annual Meeting

11/3/2010

SCAFFOLD INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION HOST ASC A92 AERIAL PLATFORMS COMMITTEE ANNUAL MEETING

Las Vegas Meetings Map Out Projects and Goals for 2011.

The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Accredited Standards Committee (ASC) A92 Aerial Platforms Committee hosted its annual meeting Oct. 24-26 at Bally’s Las Vegas in Las Vegas. The SIA serves as Secretariat for the ANSI ASC A92 to develop American National Standards for Aerial Work Platforms.

Currently, the committee has six active standards:

A92.2 for Vehicle-Mounted Rotating and Elevating Work Platforms

A92.3 for Manually Propelled Elevating Work Platforms

A92.5 for Boom-Supported Elevating Work Platforms

A92.6 for Self-Propelled Elevating Work Platforms

A92.8 for Vehicle-Mounted Bridge Inspection and Maintenance Devices

A92.10 for Transport Platforms.

In addition to the current American National Standards, the ASC A92 has developed standards for:

A92.7 for Airline Ground Support Vehicle-Mounted Vertical Lift Devices

A92.9 for Mast-Climbing Work Platforms

Both are currently undergoing revisions to become candidates for an American National Standard.

Throughout the two-day meeting, committee members met in their subcommittee meetings to discuss the status of their standards, work on changes, corresponding issues and map out their projects and goals for the upcoming year.

During the A92 Main Committee Meeting, SIA President Steve Smith thanked all participants for their time and dedication in developing the Aerial Lift standards, which help create a safer work environment for everyone using access equipment. He also acknowledged the support from senior management.

"Often overlooked, I would also like to express our appreciation to the senior management at the companies and organizations where you work. A commitment from the top down is important by providing you with the support, the resources and the flexibility to work on these projects year-round."

Smith was also pleased to hear from Dave Merrifield, chairman of the Main Committee, that SIA, as secretariat of ASC A92, and Emily Bannwarth in particular, had completely turned the administration of the program around and that everything was now fully compliant with ANSI procedures.

In addition, the committee welcomed the following new members:

Main Committee: Elliott Equipment Company, GAR Equipment, TRICO Lift, Sperian Fall Protection, Northeast Utilities, and Utility Truck Equipment & Parts, LLC.

A92.2 Subcommittee: Dan Mueller –Progress Energy, Florida; Jason White–Elliott Equipment Company; Jim Olson– Terex Telelect; Richard Mosel–Northeast Utilities; and Robert Hofmiller–DFM Enterprises

A92.3 Subcommittee: Paul Guthorn–Vollmer-Gray Engineering

A92.5 Subcommittee: Preston Anderson–Sperian Fall Protection

A92.7 Subcommittee: Don Redwine–Southwest Airlines; Andy Davis–LSG Sky Chefs; and Jim Heinzel–Delta Airlines

A92.8 Subcommittee: Robert Hofmiller–DFM Enterprises

The committee will hold its next annual meeting in October 2011 in Las Vegas.

For more information about the A92 Committees or the A92 series of standards, please contact A92 Secretariat, Emily Bannwarth, at 816.595.4860 or emily@scaffold.org.

SIA Executive Committee Approves Realignment of Regions

10/15/2010

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Laurie Weber, Executive Director

Scaffold Industry Association

laurie@scaffold.org

(816) 595.4860

SIA Executive Committee Approves Realignment of Regions

Kansas City, MO – October 6, 2010 – The Scaffold Industry Association (SIA) executive committee has approved a motion to realign current membership regions. The approved regions will mirror the current Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) region structure.

“As we seek alliances with the regional OSHA offices, the new alignment will help create consistency and a seamless connection between our regions and theirs. We will be able to better target our audience and promote OSHA programs, events and issues within a particular region. This will also be a platform for us to utilize when promoting SIA events," said SIA President Stephen Smith.

Effective October 1, 2010 the new SIA regions are as follows:

Region 1 – Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont

Region 2 – New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands

Region 3 – District of Columbia, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia,

West Virginia

Region 4 – Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina,

South Carolina, Tennessee

Region 5 – Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin

Region 6 – Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas

Region 7 – Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska

Region 8 – Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Wyoming

Region 9 – Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada

Region 10 – Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington

Region 11 – International

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 industry. 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 the official SIA website at www.scaffold.org.

OSHA reports on state-run programs

10/4/2010

US Labor Department’s OSHA reports on state-run occupational safety and health programs

Agency calls for corrective actions to keep workers safe

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration today announced that it has concluded a special evaluation of state-run occupational safety and health programs under its jurisdiction. Enhanced Federal Annual Monitoring and Evaluation reports provide detailed findings and recommendations on the operations of state-run OSHA programs in 25 states and territories. The enhanced review was initiated after a 2009 special OSHA report on Nevada’s program, prompted by numerous construction-related fatalities in Las Vegas, identified serious operational deficiencies in that state.

“Our goal is to identify problems in state-run programs before they result in serious injuries or fatalities,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Dr. David Michaels. “While we found many positives in the state programs, we also found deficiencies including concerns about identification of hazards, proper classification of violations, proposed penalty levels, and failure to follow up on violations to ensure that workplace safety and health problems are corrected.”

The EFAME report and appendices for each of the 25 states, as well as each state’s comment and fiscal year 2009 self-evaluation report, are now available on OSHA’s website at http://www.osha.gov/dcsp/osp/efame/index.html.

States will have 30 days to provide a formal response, including a detailed corrective action plan for addressing findings and recommendations. Each state’s formal response will be public information and available online as soon as it is received.

The EFAME review also identified areas where states have adopted standards and procedures exceeding federal OSHA’s requirements, such as injury and illness prevention programs in California, Washington, Oregon, Minnesota and other states; the adoption of a cranes and derricks rule prior to OSHA’s in North Carolina, Washington and Maryland; and Oregon’s requirement that employers abate serious workplace violations during the contest period, a legal tool under consideration in Congress but still lacking in federal OSHA.

The review of the Hawaii program highlights significant performance problems resulting from staffing and funding cutbacks. OSHA is addressing these problems directly with the governor’s office and has offered to provide supplemental federal enforcement assistance until the state can address its problems. If Hawaii is unable to present a reasonable strategy for expeditiously improving its worker safety and health oversight, consideration will be given to the state’s current authority to operate its own program independently and could result in a federal takeover.

We recognize that some of the problems we identified could stem from significant budget constraints in many of the states and may also be the result of less intensive federal oversight in recent years,” Michaels added. “OSHA, through its regional offices, intends to provide assistance in the implementation of corrective actions and will work closely with state officials to review progress. We are confident that by working together to address identified problems, we can improve state operations and provide more consistent protection to all of America’s workers.”

The 25 states and territories evaluated are Alaska, Arizona, California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, U.S. Virgin Islands, Virginia, Washington and Wyoming. No reports are being issued on the Nevada and Illinois state plans; a special study was issued on the Nevada state plan in October 2009, and the Illinois state plan was not approved until September 2009. The status of each state’s efforts to improve its plans will be reflected in the fiscal year 2010 Federal Annual Monitoring and Evaluation report expected in 2011. For more information about those states operating their own plans, visit http://www.osha.gov/dcsp/osp/index.html.

When Congress enacted the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, it created an opportunity for federal-state partnerships to promote safety and health. Section 18 of the law allows states to develop and enforce occupational safety and health standards in the context of an OSHA-approved state plan. Twenty-seven states and territories have sought and obtained approval. Twenty-one states and Puerto Rico have complete programs covering both the private sector and state and local governments. Four states and the U.S. Virgin Islands have programs limited in coverage to public sector employees. Currently, state plans deliver the OSHA program to 40 percent of the nation’s workplaces, with federal OSHA responsible for the other 60 percent.

State plan standards and enforcement must be at least as effective as federal OSHA in providing safe and healthful employment to workers. In addition, state plans operate under authority of state law, not delegated federal authority. Thus, in order to operate its own plan, a state must enact an equivalent of the federal OSH Act and must use administrative and regulatory procedures to adopt its own standards, regulations and operating procedures, all of which must be updated within six months of any change in the federal program.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA’s role is to assure these conditions for America’s working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.

U.S. Department of Labor releases are accessible on the Internet at http://www.dol.gov. The information in this news release will be made available in alternate format (large print, Braille, audio tape or disc) from the COAST office upon request. Please specify which news release when placing your request at 202-693-7828 or TTY 202-693-7755. The Labor Department is committed to providing America’s employers and employees with easy access to understandable information on how to comply with its laws and regulations. For more information, please visit http://www.dol.gov/compliance.

Scaffold Industry Association Honors Industry Professionals

7/29/2010

SCAFFOLD INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION HONORS INDUSTRY PROFESSIONALS FOR 2010

Ten prominent members of the scaffolding and access industry were recognized with awards for their dedication and service to the Scaffold Industry Association at the Industry Awards luncheon of the Scaffold Industry Association’s 38^th Annual Conference & Exposition in Philadelphia, Penn., on July 23, 2010.

“The SIA is fortunate to have passionate, hard-working members who are the blood-line of our association. Every year, it is with pride that we have the opportunity to recognize such individuals and their accomplishments by means of long-standing awards!” said SIA President, Bill Breault. Congratulations to the following winners.

Coupling Pin Award Winner
Chuck Hutchinson, Haulotte Bil-Jax, Archbold, Ohio

Hall of Fame Award
Howard Schapira, Action Equipment & Scaffold Co., Inc., Phoenix, Ariz.

Outstanding Chapter President Award
Chris Moody, Brock Group, Baytown, Texas

Outstanding Company Contribution Award
Strongman Building Products, Pompton Plains, N.J.

Outstanding Council Chairperson Award
Kevin O’Shea, Mastclimbers, LLC, Grayson, Ga.

Outstanding Service Award
Mike Russell, Power Climber Wind, Seattle, Wash

D. Victor Saleeby Award
Randy Moody, Brock Group, Baytown, Texas

Spirit Award
Paula Manning, Houston, Texas

“Unsung Hero” Award
Hardy Roloff, Waco Scaffolding & Equipment, Cleveland, Ohio

ATI of the Year Award
Critical Safety, Ltd., Calgary, AB, Canada

OSHA and SIA Alliance Offer Safety

6/17/2010

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Laurie Weber, Executive Director

Scaffold Industry Association

laurie@scaffold.org (816) 595.4860

OSHA and Scaffold Industry Association Alliance Offer Safety Tips in Portuguese

You may download the Portuguese TP Safety Tips by clicking here and the Portuguese MCWP Safety Tips by clicking here or you may contact SIA headquarters at (816) 595.4860 or by e-mail at info@scaffold.org for more information.

About the Mast Climbing Work Platform (MCWP) Safety Tips

Available in English and Portuguese, the Safety Tips are a tool designed to position personnel, along with their necessary tools and materials, to perform safe work on Mast Climbing equipment. For more information about the OSHA and SIA alliance product, please visit our official alliance page at http://scaffold.org/Content.asp?ID=8 .

About the Transport Platform (TP) Safety Tips

Available in English and Portuguese, the Safety Tips are tools designed to education users on the correct way to perform work on Transport Platform equipment. For more information on this OSHA and SIA alliance product, please visit our official alliance page at http://scaffold.org/Content.asp?ID=8

About the SIA

SIA Members Among Winners at 2010 IAPA Event!

3/29/2010

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Laurie Weber, Executive Director
Scaffold Industry Association
laurie@scaffold.org (816) 595.4860

Scaffold Industry Association Members among winners at the 2010 International Awards for Powered Access.

Kansas City, MO – The three founders of Genie Industries, Lavendon Access Services and smaller rental and training companies from Chile and Singapore were among the winners at the second International Awards for Powered Access (IAPAs) held in London on 25 March 2010.

Other winners included Brad Boehler of Skyjack and Kevin O’Shea of Atlanta-based Mastclimbers LLC (joint winners, IPAF Safety Champion of the Year), Spanish manufacturer Mecaplús (New Product of the Year for the ME12SL self-leveling articulated boom platform) and RSC Equipment Rental (Access Industry Sustainability Award).

The full list of winners follows:

Access Rental Company of the Year
Lavendon Access Services

Access International New Product of the Year
Mecaplús (ME12SL)

IPAF Safety Champion of the Year
Brad Boehler, Skyjack (joint winner)
Kevin O’Shea, Mastclimbers (joint winner)

Contribution to Safe Working at Height – Rental Company
A-Plant Powered Access

Contribution to Safe Working at Height – Manufacturer
Niftylift

Contribution to Safe Working at Height – End User
Crown House Technologies

Mast Climbing Work Platform Achievement Award
Harsco Infrastructure (formerly SGB Mastclimbers)

Access Industry Training Award
Serfin

Access Industry Sustainability Award
RSC Equipment Rental

Access International / IPAF Lifetime Achievement Award
Roger Brown, Ward Bushnell, Roger Wilkerson, Genie Industries

Best Marketing Campaign for IPAF Training
Alo Rentals/Alo Training, Chile

IPAF Instructor of the Year
Jildou de Jong, Kamphuis Hoogwerkers (joint winner)
Gerry Palmer, HSS Hire/HSS Training (joint winner)

Best New IPAF Training Centre
BS Technology, Singapore

The judges said that it had been a difficult job choosing the winners and that all winners and shortlisted companies should be congratulated for their achievements. A total of 85 entries were received, 20% more than for the first awards in 2009.

Of Lavendon, the judges said, “Big can often be beautiful. The judges wanted to recognize Lavendon Access Services’ leadership during a difficult year. While expanding through acquisitions and dealing with the economic challenges, it stayed true to its core values, investing in its health and safety activities and in the development of its employees.”

The judges paid tribute to the three founders of Genie: “Roger, Ward and Bob jointly built one of the world’s biggest aerial platform businesses and at the same time helped to develop a rental industry that is now a global business. Although they became a major company, they stayed true to their values of innovation, safety, teamwork and customer satisfaction. Each played a key role in the success of Genie and they leave a legacy of excellence and integrity.”

RSC Equipment Rentals was the first ever winner of the Sustainability award, with the judges stating that its emissions tracking system “will set the standard for environmental awareness and customer services in the rental business worldwide.”

BS Technology of Singapore won the Best New IPAF Training Centre award and was described as having “extraordinary corporate courage in promoting aerial platform training in areas where regulations and common practices are working against them”.

Chile’s Alo Rentals/Alo Training won the Best Marketing Campaign for IPAF Training award for its pioneering efforts to promote operator training in South America.

The judges said that Niftylift, winner of the Contribution to Safe Working at Height – Manufacturer award, should be “congratulated on its timely answer to a real and current safety risk – that of an operator being pinned in the basket by overhead obstructions. Its sensor device on the platform controls has the potential to be a life-saving device.”

They praised the focus on safety at A-Plant Powered Access and said that “the claim that health and safety is part of the company’s DNA is a convincing one. From general policy down to detailed technical issues, A-Plant is A-Plus in safety.”

The awards are jointly organized by Access International and IPAF.

The judging panel comprised:
• Paul Adorian, managing director, Powered Access Certification (PAC), UK
• John Ball, outgoing IPAF president and managing director, Height for Hire Ireland
• Renzo Pagliero, managing director, Multitel Pagliero, Italy
• Murray Pollok, managing editor, Access International, UK
• Andy Studdert, CEO, NES Rentals, USA.

About the SIA

www.scaffold.org.

SIA Joins ASSE, OSHA to Promote Safety

3/22/2010

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Laurie Weber, Executive Director

Scaffold Industry Association

laurie@scaffold.org (816) 595.4860

SCAFFOLD INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION JOINS WITH AMERICAN SOCIETY OF SAFETY ENGINEERS, OSHA, TO PROMOTE WORK SAFETY DURING N. AMERICAN OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY & HEALTH (NAOSH) WEEK THIS MAY

DES PLAINES, IL -March 22, 2010 - The Scaffold Industry Association (SIA) will join with thousands of people and businesses worldwide, along with the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE), representing more than 32,000 occupational safety, health and environmental professional members, the Canadian Society of Safety Engineering (CSSE), and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA) Alliance Program participants, in raising awareness of the importance of being safe at work during the annual North American Occupational Safety and Health (NAOSH) Week this May 2-8 and Occupational Safety and Health Professional (OSHP) Day May 5.

The NAOSH 2010 theme is 'Mission NAOSH 2010: Safe Workplaces'. In addition to activities scheduled worldwide, NAOSH week events and educational programs are scheduled for Washington, D.C., May 2 and 3, along with a roadway safety event May 5 in Portland, Oregon, with ASSE members and state officials. The NAOSH kick-off events in D.C. will be held at the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), the U.S. Capitol, the Smithsonian and the National Zoo. The events will feature panel discussions on new industry workplace safety and health efforts as well as recognizing the winners of the 8^th annual ASSE kids' 'safety-on-the-job' international poster contest for children aged 5-14. Attending the events will be ASSE members and their families, federal and state officials, and officials from ASSE, CSSE and OSHA and OSHA's Alliance Program participants.

"NAOSH week is another tool we use to educate people on the positive benefits of protecting people, property and the environment and sharing best practices among our members and their employees all in an effort to continue to enhance workplace safety worldwide," Laurie Weber, SIA Executive Director said today.

While millions of people go to work each day and leave there injury and illness free, due in part to the efforts of occupational safety, health and environmental professionals, still close to 6,000 people in the U.S. die each year from on-the-job injuries and 4.4 million more suffer illnesses. Throughout the year we continue to provide services and information that will reduce that number. NAOSH helps SIA reach millions of people and tens of thousands of businesses on the importance and long-term benefits of workplace safety and also provide them with key resource information.

Past NAOSH Week events have included fleet safety classes, ergonomic awareness events, a workplace-oriented one-day free preparedness Web Expo, update on mining safety programs, a laser safety seminar, roadway work zone safety programs, corporate workplace safety and health days, teen worker safety programs, city and state work safety fairs, symposiums on a variety of topics, projects to assist charities, personal protective equipment (PPE) fashion shows, and much more. For a listing of activities from last year along with photos please go to www.asse.org/naosh09.

"Today's economic downturn is tough for everyone and some businesses believe they can save funds by cutting back in safety. That's not a good move from a business perspective," ASSE President C. Christopher Patton, CSP, added. "Businesses have spent about $170 billion a year on costs associated with occupational injuries and health care, and about $1 billion every week on injured employees and their medical providers - costs that take away from company profits, research and growth-- costs that continue to go up as cuts in safety are being made. Indirect tangible costs of injuries may be as much as 20 times the direct costs, including costs from accident investigation, low employee morale, retraining workers and repairs and production delays, while the intangible costs of losing a loved one, a friend and a co-worker go beyond a price tag."

About the SIA

suspended scaffold. Through its various programs, the SIA promotes safety, training and a highly professional, responsible image of the scaffold and access industry. 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 the official SIA website at www.scaffold.org. For more information about the 2010 NAOSH please visit www.asse.org/naosh10.

About the ASSE

Founded in 1911, the Des Plaines, IL-based ASSE is the largest and oldest professional safety society and is committed to protecting people, property and the environment. Its more than 32,000 occupational safety, health and environmental professional members lead, manage, supervise, research and consult on safety, health, transportation and environmental issues in all industries, government, labor, health care and education. For more information on how you can participate in NAOSH Week please go to www.asse.org/naosh10.

Addendum, OSHA Alliance Participants Supporting NAOSH Week include: Airline Group - which includesAmerican Airlines, Air Transport Association of America, Inc., Continental Airlines, JetBlue Airways, Midwest Airlines, US Airways, and United Airlines; American Biological Safety Association (ABSA); American Foundry Society (AFS); American Heart Association (AHA); American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA); American Pipeline Contractors Association (APCA); American Red Cross; American Supply Association (ASA); Association for High Technology Distribution (AHTD); Association of Occupational Health Professionals (AOHP); Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN); Concrete Sawing and Drilling Association (CSDA); Coordinating Committee for Automotive Repair (CCAR); Crane, Hoist and Monorail Alliance; Independent Electrical Contractors, Inc. (IEC); Independent Lubricant Manufacturers Association (ILMA); ISSA: The Worldwide Cleaning Industry Association; Lamar Advertising Company; Laser Institute of America (LIA); National Hearing Conservation Association (NHCA); National Maritime Safety Association (NMSA); National Safety Council (NSC); National Telecommunications Safety Panel (NTSP); PLANET: Professional Landcare Network; Precision Metalforming Association (PMA); Process Safety Alliance -which includes the Center for Chemical Process Safety (CCPS) and the Chlorine Institute, Inc. (CI); The Roadway Work Zone Safety and Health Partners Alliance -- which includes the American Road and Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA), Associated General Contractors of America (AGC), International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE), Laborers' International Union of North America (LIUNA), LIUNA Training and Education Fund, the National Asphalt Pavement Association (NAPA), and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH); Safe Tank Alliance which includes API, the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), and the Steel Tank Institute (STI); Scaffold Industry Association, Inc. (SIA); Sealant Waterproofing and Restoration Institute (SWR); Shipbuilders Council of America (SCA); Society for Chemical Hazard Communication (SCHC); and URS Corporation.

SIA Announces Mast Climbing Training

3/5/2010

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Laurie Weber, Executive Director

Scaffold Industry Association

laurie@scaffold.org (816) 595.4860

Scaffold Industry Association and International Powered Access Federation announce joint agreement to offer Mast Climbing Training

Kansas City, MO - Scaffold Industry Association (SIA) and International Powered Access Federation (IPAF) signed an agreement that will allow SIA to become an AWPT approved training Center and offer the AWPT Mast Climbing training program through SIA's current Accredited Training Institutes (ATI). The Mast Climbing training provides instructions for mast climber demonstrators, mobile operators, installers and advanced installers who will receive the internationally recognized PAL card as proof of successful completion of training.

"On behalf of the SIA and ourAlliance with IPAF, we are pleased to have produced this momentous partnership. A vehicle consisting of curriculum and training so urgently needed in the Mast Climbing sector of our industry. We now have that direct vehicle to reach all demographics of users through the existing tentacles of the SIA Accredited Training Institutes throughout North America,"said Bill Breault, SIA President.

"IPAF welcomes SIA's endorsement of the AWPT mast climbing training program. The use of mast climbers is growing rapidly and the adoption of this training program will help keep this sector safe and productive. We look forward to developing this training through the SIA's Training Institutes, " said Tony Groat, AWPT Executive VP.

Trainer classes will start in early May. If you would like more information about becoming an SIA ATI Mast Climbing trainer, or would like to get trained in using Mast Climbing equipment, please contact SIA's Director of Education and Training, Granville Loar directly at (816) 595.4860.

About the SIA

a highly professional, responsible image of the scaffold and access industry. 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 the official SIA website at www.scaffold.org.

OSHA Region 6 and SIA Form Alliance

2/23/2010

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Laurie Weber, Executive Director

Scaffold Industry Association

laurie@scaffold.org (816) 595.4860

OSHA Region 6 and Scaffold Industry Association Form An Alliance

Kansas City, MO - US Labor Department's OSHA Region 6 and Scaffold Industry Association (SIA) have formed an alliance to promote safety and health in the construction industry. Enhanced workplace safety for construction workers in the states of Louisiana and Texas is the goal of an alliance signed by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Scaffold Industry Association (SIA), South Central Regional Chapter in Houston on February 22, 2010, during SIA's mid-year Committee Week meeting.

"We welcome this opportunity to join with the SIA toward emphasizing employer awareness of hazardous working conditions in the construction industry," said Dean McDaniel, OSHA's regional administrator in Dallas, Texas. "It is hopeful that this cooperative effort will help prevent injuries, illnesses and fatalities."

Under this agreement, partners will work together to develop educational training programs relating to scaffold and fall hazards, as well as applicable American National Safety Institute (ANSI) consensus standards. The agreement also will establish communication methods for providing information to employers and employees in the construction industry.

"We are really excited about this opportunity for the members in our region to work hands on with OSHA," said SIA South Central Chapter President, Chris Moody.

About the SIA

standards. For more information, call (816) 595.4860 or visit the official SIA website at www.scaffold.org.

Transport Platform (TP) Safety Tips

2/17/2010

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Laurie Weber, Executive Director
Scaffold Industry Association
laurie@scaffold.org (816) 595.4860

OSHA and Scaffold Industry Association Alliance Develop Transport Platform (TP) Safety Tips

Kansas City, MO - Kansas City, MO - Through the OSHA and Scaffold Industry Association (SIA) Alliance, SIA developed "Transport Platform (TP) Safety Tips." The Safety Tips are tools designed to education users on the correct way to perform their work on Transport Platform equipment.

"The recently approved Transport Platform Safety Tips is the second document of its kind developed through the SIA / OSHA Alliance Program, and a huge step forward in OSHA recognizing this new type of equipment. Along with the ANSI standard approved in 2009, these safety tips will reach the people using this type of product and help educate them on the safe and proper use of Transport Platforms. The Mast Climbing Council looks forward to working with OSHA, through the Alliance Program, to develop additional safety related material," said Greg Janda, SIA Mast Climbing Council Chair and document coordinator.

You may download the TP Safety Tips by clicking here or you may contact SIA headquarters at (816) 595.4860 or by e-mail at info@scaffold.org for more information.

About the SIA

SIA Aerial Work Platform Council News Brief

2/8/2010

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Laurie Weber, Executive Director

Scaffold Industry Association

laurie@scaffold.org (816) 595-4860

SCAFFOLD INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION JOINS INDUSTRY-WIDE INITIATIVE TO CREATE FIRST-EVER AWP EQUIPMENT DOCUMENT ON GENERAL TRAINING AND FAMILIARIZATION

SIA Aerial Work Platform Council News Brief:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The American Rental Association (ARA), the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM), the Associated Equipment Distributors (AED), the International Powered Access Federation (IPAF) and the Scaffold Industry Association (SIA) have joined forces for a first-of-its-kind industry initiative to develop an educational document to clarify what is required for general training and model-specific familiarization of aerial work platform (AWP) equipment.

The result of this joint initiative is the Statement of Best Practices of General Training and Familiarization for Aerial Work Platform Equipment, the first such document that is applicable for use by everyone in the industry. The content addresses:

· Educating individuals on the industry-recognized-and-supported standards, including the American National Standards Institute/Scaffold Industry Association (ANSI/SIA) A92 Standards and the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) regulations.

· Presenting best practices and minimum general training guidelines for AWP operators.

· Emphasizing the differences between general training and familiarization to all parties responsible.

· Clarifying minimum qualifications of the trainer.

The purpose of this joint initiative is to increase the safe use of AWP equipment and expand risk management knowledge for use of these machines throughout the country.

The document is available at no charge via the SIA website.

Click here to download the document now.

About the SIA

suspended scaffold. Through 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, ASC A92

standards. For more information, call (816) 595-4860 or go online at www.scaffold.org.

About the Contributing Organizations

American Rental Association (ARA) is the international trade association for the equipment rental industry, including rental businesses and suppliers to the industry. ARA provides educational, insurance/risk management, business management and marketing resources, networking opportunities, industry research along with legislative and regulatory advocacy for its members.

Associated Equipment Distributors (AED) is an international trade association representing companies involved in the distribution, rental and support of equipment used in construction, mining, forestry, power generation, agriculture and industrial applications. AED enhances the ongoing success and profitability of its member companies and related constituencies through public policy advocacy, industry education, training and career development, networking opportunities, as well as research and performance benchmarks.

Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) is the North American-based international trade group representing the off-road equipment manufacturing industry and its members’ manufacturing equipment, products and services used worldwide in the agriculture, construction, forestry, mining and utility sectors.

International Powered Access Federation (IPAF) is the specialist international trade association representing rental companies, manufacturers and the end users of every type of aerial work platform. IPAF provides training programs, lobbying, market research, business advice and other resources to members and non-members as part of its worldwide mission to “promote the safe and effective use of powered access.”

US Department of Labors OSHA announces OSHA Listens

1/15/2010

US Department of Labor’s OSHA announces ‘OSHA Listens’ public meeting to solicit comments and suggestions from stakeholders

Public meeting scheduled for Feb. 10 in Washington, D.C.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) today announced a public meeting, “OSHA Listens,” to solicit comments and suggestions from OSHA stakeholders on key issues facing the agency. The meeting is scheduled for Feb. 10 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST in Washington, D.C.

“Public involvement in the government’s activities is a priority for this administration and is important to enhancing OSHA efforts to protect the safety and health of workers,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Dr. David Michaels. “This public meeting gives us an opportunity to hear your ideas, suggestions and comments on key issues facing this agency.”

Some of the questions OSHA invites public input on include:

What can the agency do to enhance and encourage the efforts of employers, workers and unions to identify and address workplace hazards?
What are the most important emerging or unaddressed health and safety issues in the workplace, and what can OSHA do to address these?
How can the agency improve its efforts to engage stakeholders in programs and initiatives?
Are there additional measures to improve the effectiveness of the agency’s current compliance assistance efforts and the onsite consultation program to ensure small businesses have the information needed to provide safe workplaces?
What specific actions can the agency take to enhance the voice of workers in the workplace, particularly workers who are hard to reach, who do not have ready access to information about hazards or their rights, or who are afraid to exercise their rights?

The public meeting will be held at the Frances Perkins Building auditorium, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. To attend and/or make an oral presentation, individuals must register by e-mail at stakeholder.meeting@dol.gov by close of business on Feb. 3. In the e-mail, include:

Your name, title, company or organization (if applicable), address, telephone number and e-mail address.
If you wish to make a short presentation, the specific topic or issue to be addressed.

Those unable to attend may send written comments to OSHA Docket Office, Docket Number OSHA-2010-0004, Technical Data Center, Room N-2625, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20210, or submit them via e-mail to stakeholder.meeting@dol.gov. Identify all comments with the docket number.

For more information on the scope of the meeting, attending the meeting or providing written comments, refer to the Federal Register notice at http://www.federalregister.gov/OFRUpload/OFRData/2010-00814_PI.pdf.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, OSHA’s role is to promote safe and healthful working conditions for America’s working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, outreach and education. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.

# # #

U.S. Department of Labor releases are accessible on the Internet at http://www.dol.gov. The information in this news release will be made available in alternate format (large print, Braille, audiotape or disc) from the COAST office upon request. Please specify which news release when placing your request at 202-693-7828 or TTY 202-693-7755 . The Labor Department is committed to providing America’s employers and employees with easy access to understandable information on how to comply with its laws and regulations. For more information, please visit http://www.dol.gov/compliance.

Mark Your Calendars! SIA Spring Regional Meetings

1/8/2010

Pull out your 2010 calendars and mark down the SIA Regional Meeting closest to you!

We are taking it across country to bring beneficial and informative meetings relating to the scaffold and access industry. We encourage all users, manufacturers, dealers, suppliers, erectors, general contractors, and any affiliated companies in the industry to attend.

Keep checking back for further updates!

Southeast Region
Atlanta, GA
March 26, 2010

South Central Region

Baton Rouge, LA

April 9, 2010

North Central Region

Chicago, IL

April 15, 2010

Southwest Region

Denver, CO

April 23, 2010

West Coast Region

La Mirada, CA

April 30, 2010

South Central Region

Houston Area Golf Tournament

May 7, 2010

Northwest Region

Portland, OR

May 13, 2010

Northeast Region

Washington DC Metro

May 21, 2010

October Construction Up 12%

11/23/2009

Visit us at: www.construction.com

October Construction Jumps 12 Percent

New York, N.Y. – November 20, 2009 – The value of new construction starts climbed 12% in October to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $447.6 billion, it was reported by McGraw-Hill Construction, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies. The upward push came from double-digit gains for nonresidential building and nonbuilding construction (public works and electric utilities). At the same time, residential building in October was unchanged from its September pace. Through the first ten months of 2009, total construction on an unadjusted basis came in at $350.1 billion, down 29% from the

same period a year ago.

The October statistics lifted the Dodge Index to 95 (2000=100), up from 84 in September, and the highest level so far in 2009. The Dodge Index had fallen to 80 in February 2009, and since then has registered improvement, although the October reading was still 19% below the full year 2008 average for the Index at 117. “After bottoming out in early 2009, there’s been an up-and-down pattern for construction starts, with a gradual upward trend beginning to emerge,” stated Robert A. Murray, vice president of economicaffairs for McGraw-Hill Construction. “Single family housing is no longer pulling down the overall level of construction activity, and transportation-related public works has strengthened, helped by the federal stimulus funding. For nonresidential building, much of 2009 has been characterized by a steep loss of momentum, so October’s gain represents a departure from recent experience. It suggests that nonresidential building is beginning to make the transition from steady decline to a more varied pattern, which signifies the trend is shifting to a slower rate of descent going into 2010. On a cautionary note, the nonresidential building market is still looking at several major constraints going forward – rising vacancies, tight bank lending standards, and the weakened fiscal health of state and local governments.”

Nonresidential building in October climbed 19% to $177.9 billion (annual rate), with stronger rates of contracting being reported for many structure types following a weak September. On the institutional side, the educational building category grew 5%, helped by groundbreaking for two large high schools located in Ohio ($104 million) and Massachusetts ($98 million), as well as a large university biotech research building in Colorado ($98 million). Healthcare facilities also showed moderate growth from the

prior month, rising 6%, lifted by the start of a $300 million hospital tower in Orange County CA. For the smaller institutional categories, amusement-related projects soared 93% in October, reflecting the $458 million expansion and renovation of the Javits Convention Center in New York NY. The public buildings category advanced 56%, due largely to the start of the $325 million U.S. courthouse in San Diego CA, a project funded by the federal stimulus bill. Dormitory construction increased 53%, helped by the start of a $93 million military housing complex in Fort Lee VA and a $75 million college dormitory project in Binghamton NY. Transportation terminal work rose 7%, with much of the boost coming from the start of a $90 million project to upgrade five subway stations in the Bronx NY. Of the institutional categories, only church construction posted a decline in October, sliding 9%.

For commercial building in October, office construction climbed 24% after a very weak September, as several large office projects reached groundbreaking. These included a $367 million corporate headquarters in Oklahoma City OK, a $252 million data center and office complex in Olympia WA, and the $123 million renovation to the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington DC. Hotel construction jumped 101% in October, led by the start of the $303 million Dallas Convention Center Hotel in Dallas TX. Store construction edged up 4% in October, but warehouses showed further weakness, dropping 19%. The manufacturing buildings category in October improved 5% on top of its elevated September amount, with the lift provided by a $1.1 billion oil refinery expansion in Illinois.

Nonbuilding construction, at $141.9 billion (annual rate), increased 16% in October. Highway construction regained upward momentum, rising 12% after a pause in September, although bridge-related projects retreated 12%. Through the first ten months of 2009, highways and bridges were one of the few major construction categories able to register year-to-date gains, rising 6% and 7% respectively. Murray noted, “Highway and bridge construction began to show the benefits from the federal stimulus funding inlate spring, while the benefits to other construction project types are only now beginning to emerge.” On the environmental side, both sewer and water supply construction strengthened in October following lackluster contracting in recent months. Sewer construction, which includes hazardous waste work, grew 9% with help from a $99 million landfill remediation project in Staten Island NY. Water supply construction in October climbed 19%, with the push coming from a $166 million water treatment plantand water line project in Stockton CA. However, river/harbor development in October fell 53% from a very strong September amount. For “miscellaneous” public works, which includes such diverse project types as site work and rail projects, October witnessed a 33% increase, aided by the start of a $203 million rail project in Joliet IL. October also included strength for electric utilities, which surged 341% from a depressed September. Large electric utility projects included as October starts were the following – the$450 million Trans Bay Cable Project in San Francisco CA, a $400 million natural gas-fired power plant in North Carolina, a $300 million wind farm in Missouri, and a $170 million biomass cogenerating facility in South Carolina.

Residential building, at $127.8 billion (annual rate) in October, was essentially unchanged from the prior month. Single family housing slipped back 2%, marking the first decline after six straight months of gains. By region, single family housing showed diminished activity in the South Atlantic (down 7%), the Northeast (down 2%), and the South Central (down 1%), while the Midwest and West were unchanged. October’s pace for single family housing, while 49% above the extremely depressed amount reported atthe start of 2009, was still 11% below the monthly average for full year 2008. Multifamily housing in October advanced 20% from a very weak September, with October boosted by such projects as an $80 million senior housing development in Chicago IL, a $63 million apartment building in New York NY, and a $59 million retirement community in Ft. Worth TX.

During the first ten months of 2009, the 29% drop for total construction compared to last year was due to weaker activity for all three major construction sectors. Residential building continued to show the largest year-to-date decline, falling 36%, with single family down 28% while multifamily plunged 60%. Nonresidential building was not far behind with a 34% reduction, as the result of this year-to-date performance by segment – commercial, down 50%; manufacturing, down 67%; and institutional, down 16%. Nonbuilding construction in the first ten months of 2009 retreated 14%, with public works slipping 4% while electric utilities plummeted 51%. By geography, total construction in the first ten months of 2009 showed similar weakness across the five major regions – the Midwest and West, each down 28%; the South Central, down 29%; and the South Atlantic and Northeast, each down 31%.

About McGraw-Hill Construction

McGraw-Hill Construction connects people, projects, and products across the design and construction industry. From project and product information to industry news, trends and forecasts, the company provides industry players the tools, resources, and applications that help them save time, money, and energy. Backed by the power of Dodge, Sweets, Architectural Record, Engineering News-Record (ENR), and its Regional Publications, McGraw-Hill Construction serves more than one million customers within the $4.6 trillion global construction community. For more information, visit www.construction.com.

US Department of Labor welcomes GAO�s report

11/17/2009

US Department of Labor welcomes GAO's report on under-reporting of workplace injuries and illnesses

OSHA finds problems identified in report alarming

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) welcomes the Government Accountability Office's (GAO) report on the under-reporting of workplace injuries and illnesses and OSHA's audit process.

The report identifies a number of factors that may contribute to the inaccuracy of employer injury and illness records, as well as problems with the audits that OSHA conducts to ensure their accuracy.

"Accurate injury and illness records are vital to protect workers' health and safety," said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. "They not only enable OSHA to better target its resources and determine the effectiveness of its efforts, accurate numbers are also an important tool that workers and employers can use to identify hazards in their workplaces."

The report identifies worker intimidation as well as a number of disincentives that may discourage workers and employers from reporting work-related injuries and illnesses. The report also notes widespread reports from occupational health practitioners who were pressured not to record an injury or illness.

Acting Assistant Secretary for OSHA Jordan Barab announced that the agency will move swiftly to implement the recommendations made by the GAO. Additionally, in response to numerous studies of under-reporting and congressional interest, on Oct. 1, OSHA implemented a National Emphasis Program on Recordkeeping. OSHA will send inspectors into worksites across the country to review the occupational injury and illness records prepared by businesses.

"Many of the problems identified in the report are quite alarming, and OSHA will be taking strong enforcement action where we find underreporting," Solis said.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act, OSHA's role is to promote safe and healthful working conditions for America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, outreach and education. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.

# # #

U.S. Department of Labor releases are accessible on the Internet at http://www.dol.gov. The information in this news release will be made available in alternate format (large print, Braille, audiotape or disc) from the COAST office upon request. Please specify which news release when placing your request at 202-693-7828 or TTY 202-693-7755. The Labor Department is committed to providing America's employers and employees with easy access to understandable information on how to comply with its laws and regulations. For more information, please visit http://www.dol.gov/compliance.

ASC A92 Aerial Platforms Cmte Annual Meeting

11/9/2009

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Laurie Weber, Executive Director

Scaffold Industry Association

laurie@scaffold.org (816) 595.4860

SCAFFOLD INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION HOST ASC A92 AERIAL PLATFORMS COMMITTEE ANNUAL MEETING

The ASC A92 Aerial Platforms Committee held its annual meeting Oct. 25-27 at Harrah's Las Vegas with record-setting attendance of more than 90 attendees.

The committee celebrated its two major accomplishments from this past year, the revision of the standard, ANSI/SIA A92.2 for Vehicle-Mounted and Rotating Aerial Devices and the approval of the new standard, ANSI/SIA A92.10 for Transport Platforms.

In addition, the committee also welcomed the new members to the committee:

Ø Main Committee: Caterpillar, Steven Brown; NES Rentals, Teresa Kee; Eric A. Schmidt, PE, Eric Schmidt

Ø A92.2 Subcommittee: U.S. Technics Company, Daniel Pohly; Altec HiLine LLC, Eric Lumberg; Progress Energy, Carolina, David Benson

Ø A92.3 Subcommittee: American Rental Association, Carla Brozick; United Rentals, Thomas Hilmer

Ø A92.5 Subcommittee: American Rental Association, Carla Brozick; Caterpillar, Steven Brown; Helac Corporation, Carl Kishline; IVES Training Group, Robert Vetter; NES Rentals, Teresa Kee; Sunbelt Rentals, Jeff Stachowiak; United Rentals, Thomas Hilmer

Ø A92.6 Subcommittee: American Rental Association, Carla Brozick; Caterpillar, Steven Brown IVES Training Group, Robert Vetter; NES Rentals, Teresa Kee; United Rentals, Thomas Hilmer

Ø A92.7 Subcommittee: U.S. Technics Company, Daniel Pohly; Blazing Technologies, Donald Blasdell

Ø A92.8 Subcommittee: Terex-Hydraplatforms, Nicholas Tomlinson

Ø A92.9 Subcommittee: EZ Scaffold, James Hinton

The committee also announced the new A92.2 Subcommittee Chairman Joshua Chard, who is replacing long-served chairman Gary McAlexander. Thank you, Gary, for your time, service and dedication to the subcommittee and welcome aboard Joshua!

The committee will hold its next annual meeting in October 2010 in Las Vegas.

The SIA serves as Secretariat for the ANSI Accredited Standards Committee A92 for Aerial Work Platforms. Please contact A92 Secretariat, Emily Bannwarth, at (816) 595-4860 or emily@scaffold.org for more information about the committee or the A92 series of standards.

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, ASC A92 standards. For more information, call (816) 595.4860 or visit them at www.scaffold.org.

New SIA DVD offering

11/4/2009

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Laurie Weber, Executive Director

Scaffold Industry Association

laurie@scaffold.org (816) 595.4860

SCAFFOLD INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION OFFERS “BASIC RIGGING AND OPERATING PROCEDURES FOR SUSPENDED SCAFFOLD” IN SPANISH

SIA Suspended Scaffold Council News Brief:

Members of the Scaffold Industry Association Suspended Scaffold Council are proud to offer the “Basic Rigging and Operating Procedures for Suspended Scaffold” DVD in Spanish.

“Anyone who uses, or is thinking about using, suspended scaffolding should view this prior to going aloft. It's an excellent guide for safety. After many years of training, we are thrilled to finally see this Spanish training aid. Designed to educate Spanish suspended scaffold users, this new updated DVD training guide is a win. Kudos to all of you who have helped make this program a reality,” say SIA Suspended Scaffold Co-Chairs Harold Gidish and Cliff Theve.

The SIA is offering the Spanish version of the DVD for only $50 until Nov. 30, 2009. To order the DVD, call SIA headquarters at (816) 595.4860.

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 andsuspended 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, ASC A92 standards. For more information, call (816) 595.4860 or visit them at www.scaffold.org.

Special Price Offer for New Standard A92.10-2009

10/23/2009

ANSI/SIA A92.10-2009 for Transport Platforms

October 13, 2009 marked the publication date of the new standard ANSI/SIA A92.10 for Transport Platforms. This consensus standard will become effective in the industry on April 13, 2010.

For a limited time, the Scaffold Industry Association is offering a special offer! All orders received by December 31, 2009 will receive an extra 25% discount on top of already reduced member pricing! To take advantage of the special price, email the completed Sales Order Form to emily@scaffold.org or fax it to 816.472.7765.

The SIA serves as an ANSI-Accredited Standards Developer for the A92 Aerial Work Platform series of standards. To learn more about the Scaffold Industry Association, the A92 series of publications or other educational items, visit www.scaffold.org or call 816.595.4860.

ANSI/SIA A92.2-2009 is Now Available

10/22/2009

The newly revised standard, ANSI/SIA A92.2-2009 for Vehicle-Mounted Elevating and Rotating Aerial Devices, is now available!

The SIA is still offering a special price on all ANSI/SIA A92.2-2009 orders. All orders received by December 31, 2009, will receive an extra 25% discount on top of already reduced member pricing!

To place your order, visit www.scaffold.org or contact SIA Headquarters at 816.595.4860.

US Labor Department�s OSHA issues report

10/20/2009

US Labor Department’s OSHA issues report

on Nevada’s state occupational safety and health program

Federal OSHA to review all state plan programs

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has released a report on Nevada’s occupational safety and health program that reveals a number of serious concerns with the program’s operation, including failure to issue appropriate willful and repeat citations, poorly trained inspectors and lack of follow-up to determine whether hazards were abated. The comprehensive evaluation of the Nevada OSHA plan points to an urgent need for corrections in oversight and changes in all phases of its workplace safety and health program.

Twenty-five workers were killed in construction accidents at sites along the Las Vegas strip from January 2008 through June 2009. Those deaths, in addition to extensive media coverage revealing Nevada OSHA’s poor handling of the fatality investigations and several serious complaints filed with federal OSHA about Nevada’s state plan administration, compelled OSHA’s investigation.

“The safety of workers must be priority one, and the U.S. Department of Labor is stepping up review of state OSHA plans to ensure that is the case,” said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. “I am pleased that Nevada OSHA cooperated fully throughout the evaluation process and that the state agency’s new leadership has pledged to take prompt corrective action.”

Between July and August 2009, OSHA monitors evaluated Nevada’s workplace fatality investigations, as well as information from all Nevada OSHA inspections conducted from January 2008 through June 2009. OSHA identified a number of systemic issues that caused great concern: Identified hazards were not cited, families of deceased workers were not notified of fatality investigations nor provided opportunities to speak to investigators – though family members may provide information pertinent to a case, and Nevada OSHA investigators demonstrated limited knowledge of construction safety hazards.

The details of OSHA’s Nevada report raised concerns about OSHA’s monitoring of all state plan states. Jordan Barab, the Labor Department’s acting Assistant Secretary for OSHA, added, “As a result of the deficiencies identified in Nevada OSHA’s program and this administration’s goal to move from reaction to prevention, we will strengthen the oversight, monitoring and evaluation of all state programs.”

Barab also pointed out the benefits of state programs: “Many state programs have shown they have the flexibility to deal with workplace hazards that are sometimes not addressed by federal OSHA, and we strongly support their initiative and dedication.”

The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 encourages states to develop and operate their own job safety and health programs. Federal OSHA approves and monitors the state plans and provides up to 50 percent of an approved plan’s operating costs. Nevada, one of 27 states and American territories approved to operate its own safety and health enforcement program, has been a state plan state since December 1973. OSHA’s role is to promote safe and healthful working conditions for America’s men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, outreach and education. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.

# # #

American National Standards Institute Approves New Standard

10/16/2009

The Scaffold Industry Association announces approval of the new standard ANSI/SIA A92.10-2009 for Transport Platforms.

ANSI/SIA A92.10-2009 Transport Platforms was approved by the ANSI Board of Standards Review on October 9, 2009. Visit www.scaffold.org for the latest updates on the new standard.

The SIA would like to thank members of the ASC A92 Main Committee and the A92.10 subcommittee of all the hard work, time, and dedication to developing a standard to ensure safe practices of transport platforms. We applaud your continued support!

The SIA serves as an ANSI-Accredited Standards Developer for the A92 Aerial Work Platform series of standards. To learn more about the Scaffold Industry Association, the A92 publications or other educational items, visit www.scaffold.org or call 816-595-4860 .

ASC A92 to oppose formation of ASSE A10.29 Proposed Standard

9/25/2009

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Laurie Weber, Associate Director

Scaffold Industry Association

laurie@scaffold.org (816) 595.4860

ASC A92 to oppose formation of ASSE A10.29 Proposed Standard

The American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE), secretariat for the ANSI-Accredited Standards Committee (ASC) A10 for Construction and Demolition Operations has drafted a new proposed standard – ASSE A10.29 for Safe Practices for the Use of Aerial Platforms in Construction. The ASC A92 believes this proposed standard is duplicative and in direct conflict with existing A92 series of standards. The A92 series of standards currently covers various Aerial Work Platforms devices. These include, but are not limited to, vehicle-mounted elevating and rotating devices, self-propelled aerial work platforms, boom-supported aerial work platforms, and manually-propelled aerial work platforms.

The ASC A92 stands behind its set of ANSI approved standards. If adopted, the proposed ASSE A10.29 will create confusion in the industry for designing, manufacturing, performance, training and use of these devices. Given the extent of the conflicting standards, the ASC A92 will formally submit its objections and comments to ASSE A10 by the October 6, 2009, deadline for public comment.

The SIA serves as an ANSI-Accredited Standards Developer for the A92 Aerial Work Platform series of standards. To learn more about the ASC A92’s objections, the A92 series of publications, or other ANSI issues, please contact Emily Bannwarth, A92 Secretariat, at (816) 595.4860 or emily@scaffold.org.

About the SIA

SIA JOINS CAL-OSHA ADVISORY COMMITTEE

9/22/2009

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Laurie Weber, Associate Director

Scaffold Industry Association

laurie@scaffold.org (816) 595.4860

SCAFFOLD INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION JOINS CAL-OSHA ADVISORY COMMITTEE

SIA Platform Council News Brief:

Members of the Scaffold Industry Association Platform Council, Oversight Committee, various manufacturers, associations and labor union representatives participated in a California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board Advisory Committee meeting on Scaffold Plank Design Requirements on Sept. 2-3.

It was recommended by California’s Research and Standards Safety Unit that an advisory committee convene to evaluate draft text to update California OSHA standard 1637. The current standard does not clearly address laminated veneer lumber scaffold plank and proper labeling of solid sawn scaffold planks that have come into market over the past several years. Additionally, the existing standards are narrowly focused on Douglas fir scaffold plank grade material, whereas the industry is predominantly solid sawn Southern Yellow Pine and laminated veneer lumber scaffold plank.

Over the two-day meeting, the Advisory Committee came to a consensus on the draft with updated definitions as well as general design, labeling and construction requirements for engineered wood (i.e. laminated veneer lumber), fabricated and solid sawn scaffold planks. The pending changes will provide clarity for manufacturers and employers alike.

The proposal must be reviewed and approved by the Office of Administrative Law before the changes come in to effect. The entire process can take approximately one year, with implementation by December 2010.

As with many standards and regulations, California has the led the way with safer and stricter tolerances. Adopting this type of proposal not only at the state level but a national level, would be of great benefit and safety to the scaffold industry. Please look for updates on this proposal in the near future.

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, ASC A92 standards. For more information, call (816) 595.4860 or visit them at www.scaffold.org.

Pre-Sale Offer! ANSI/SIA A92.2-2009 Standard

9/16/2009

Pre-Sale Offer!

ANSI/SIA A92.2-2009 Vehicle-Mounted Elevating and Rotating Aerial Devices Standard

September 1, 2009 marked the publication date of the newly revised ANSI/SIA A92.2 Vehicle-Mounted Elevating and Rotating Aerial Devices. This consensus standard will become effective in the industry on March 1, 2010.

To prepare for the upcoming revisions to the standard, the Scaffold Industry Association is offering a special Pre-Sale Offer! All orders received by December 31, 2009 will receive an extra 25% discount on top of already reduced member pricing! To take advantage of the pre-sale price, email the completed Pre-Sale Form to emily@scaffold.org or fax it to 816.472.7765.

Information regarding the corresponding A92.2 Manual of Responsibilities will be available soon.

The SIA serves as an ANSI-Accredited Standards Developer for the A92 Aerial Work Platform series of standards. To learn more about the Scaffold Industry Association, the A92 series of publications or other educational items, visit www.scaffold.org or call 816.595.4860.

July Construction Jumps 8 Percent

9/1/2009

July Construction Jumps 8 Percent

New York, N.Y. – August 18, 2009 – The value of new construction starts climbed 8% in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $420.3 billion, it was reported by McGraw-Hill Construction, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies. Nonresidential building strengthened after a very weak June, while residential building continued to edge upward from its depressed performance at the outset of 2009. The nonbuilding construction sector, comprised of public works and electric utilities, was essentially flat in July with the previous month.

The July statistics lifted the Dodge Index to 89 (2000=100), up from 82 in June. “Since March there’s been an up-and-down pattern for construction starts, supporting the belief that a leveling-off process is now underway,” stated Robert A. Murray, vice president of economic affairs for McGraw-Hill Construction. “This follows the steep decline during the latter half of 2008 that carried over into early 2009. Single family housing, while still at an extremely low volume, has now shown improvement in five out of the past six months. Public works construction is beginning to reveal a faster pace for transportation-related projects, helped by the federal stimulus funding. For nonresidential building, the broad downward trend is still in progress, but occasionally there are upticks, such as the strengthening that occurred in July following the dismal activity in June.”

Nonresidential building in July climbed 13% to $170.5 billion (annual rate), putting on temporary hold the descent that brought contracting down 26% from the end of last year through June. The nonresidential total received much of its lift in July from the institutional structure types. In particular, healthcare facilities soared 172%, reflecting the July groundbreaking of seven massive hospital and medical center projects. Two were located in California ($590 million and $425 million), two were located in Texas ($335 million and $100 million), and the remaining three were located in Alabama ($300 million), Oregon ($220 million), and Idaho ($150 million). Murray noted, “July’s large hospital projects were reminiscent of 2008 when the healthcare facilities category reached a record high. At the same time, healthcare-related building has pulled back substantially in 2009, with this year’s January-July period down 32% compared to 2008. Given the tough financial climate for healthcare firms, combined with the uncertainty related to the debate over healthcare reform, it’s not expected that July’s brisk activity will be maintained as 2009 progresses.” Large increases in July were also reported for transportation terminal work (up 57%) and churches (up 27%), both relative to very weak June levels. Amusement-related projects in July climbed 26%, helped by $525 million related to the start of the Florida Marlins baseball stadium in Miami FL. The public buildings category settled back 2% from June, although July did include groundbreaking for two large courthouse projects, located in Illinois ($153 million) and Iowa ($76 million). The educational buildings category, down 14% in July, ran counter to the elevated activity shown by the other institutional categories.

The commercial categories in July registered a mixed performance. Gains from a weak June were reported for stores (up 2%), warehouses (up 18%), and hotels (up 46%), while office buildings retreated an additional 16%. The manufacturing plant category had an especially weak July, falling 71% from the previous month.

Residential building, at $127.4 billion (annual rate), advanced 10% in July. Single family housing grew 5%, although July’s pace was still 13% below last year’s monthly average. By geography, single family housing revealed July gains in the Northeast (up 9%), the South Atlantic (up 8%), the West (up 7%), and the Midwest (up 6%), while the South Central showed a slight decline (down 1%). Multifamily housing in July jumped 45%, but despite the large percentage gain contracting was still down 47% from last year’s monthly average. July’s multifamily amount was aided by the start of a $300 million condominium tower in Chicago IL, plus the start of a $102 million military family housing project at Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri. Even with these two large projects, the number of large multifamily projects is down substantially this year – during the first seven months of 2009 there were a total of four multifamily projects valued at $100 million or greater that reached groundbreaking, compared to 21 such projects in the same period a year ago.

Nonbuilding construction in July grew a slight 1% to $122.5 billion (annual rate). On the positive side, the “miscellaneous” public works category (which includes mass transit and site work) advanced 50%, helped by the start of a $111 million light rail project in Utah. River/harbor development climbed 24%, with the boost coming from the $97 million Olmsted Dam project in Kentucky. Water supply construction increased 16%, helped by large water treatment plant projects in South Dakota ($64 million)

and Texas ($46 million). In contrast, highways and bridges in July retreated 9% and 5% respectively, settling back after the improvement that was shown by both project types in May and June. Sewer construction in July dropped 14% from the strong rate of activity experienced during June. For the January-July period of 2009 compared to a year ago, highways (unchanged) and bridges (up 8%) have fared relatively well, along with river/harbor development (up 5%). Running behind last year through the first seven months were miscellaneous public works (down 12%), sewers (down 33%) and water supply systems (down 36%). The electric utilities category in July fell 22% from June, although July did include the start of a $110 million wind farm in North Dakota.

On an unadjusted basis, total construction during the first seven months of 2009 was reported at $236.0 billion, down 35% from a year ago. The year-to-date declines have become slightly smaller in recent months, and this trend should continue as the comparison is made against the sharp slide in activity that occurred during the fall of 2008. By major sector, residential building fell 43% in the January-July period of 2009. Nonresidential building retreated 38%, due to this behavior by segment – commercial, down 55%; manufacturing, down 75%; and institutional, down 18%. Nonbuilding construction in the January-July period of 2009 dropped 20%, with public works slipping 10% while electric utilities tumbled 57%. By geography, total construction witnessed this year-to-date performance – the Northeast, down 41%; the South Atlantic, down 36%; the West, down 34%; the South Central, down 33%; and the Midwest, down 31%.

Additional perspective is made possible by looking at twelve-month moving totals, in this case the twelve months ending July 2009 compared to the twelve months ending July 2008. On this basis, total construction registers a 29% decline, as the result of this pattern – residential building, down 43%; nonresidential building, down 27%; and nonbuilding construction, down 14%. By geography, the twelve months ending July 2009 showed the following for total construction compared to the previous twelve months – the South Atlantic, down 34%; the Northeast, down 32%; the West, down 30%; the South Central, down 25%; and the Midwest, down 24%.

About McGraw-Hill Construction

U.S. Labor Secretary Hilda L. Solis, in response to worker fatality decline

8/20/2009

U.S. Labor Secretary Hilda L. Solis, in response to worker fatality decline in Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries,

says one death is too many

WASHINGTON – In response to today’s Bureau of Labor Statistics report announcing the preliminary Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries of 5,071 fatal work injuries in 2008 — down from a total of 5,657 fatal work injuries reported in 2007 — U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis issued the following statement:

“With every one of these fatalities, the lives of a worker’s family members were shattered and forever changed. We can’t forget that fact.

“While the decrease in the number of fatal work injuries represents change in the right direction, it does not lessen the need for strong enforcement to ensure that safety is a top priority in every workplace. In fact, today’s report prompts us to step up our vigilance, particularly as the economy regains momentum.

“Working with both employers and employees, the Department of Labor will not be satisfied until there are no workplace deaths due to failure to comply with safety rules.”

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OSHA and Scaffold Industry Association Alliance Develop Mast Climbing Work Platform (MCWP) Safety Tips

8/20/2009

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:

Laurie Weber, Associate Director

Scaffold Industry Association

laurie@scaffold.org (816) 595.4860

OSHA and Scaffold Industry Association Alliance

Develop Mast Climbing Work Platform (MCWP) Safety Tips

Kansas City, MO - Through the OSHA and Scaffold Industry Association (SIA) Alliance, SIA developed "Mast Climbing Work Platform (MCWP) Safety Tips." The Safety Tips are a tool designed to position personnel, along with their necessary tools and materials, to perform their work on Mast Climbing equipment.

“The recently approved Mast Climbing Work Platform Safety Tips are a great first step toward making the public more aware of what needs to be considered when using this type of equipment. We look forward to working with OSHA, through the Alliance Program, to develop more safety-related material and see this as an opportunity to reach even more of the work force to help educate them on the safe use of mast climbing work platforms,” said Greg Janda, SIA Mast Climbing Council Chair.

You may download the MCWP Safety Tips by clicking here or you may contact SIA headquarters at (816) 595.4860 or by e-mail at info@scaffold.org for more information.

About the S IA

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 www.scaffold.org.

OSHA establishes �Watch List� to strengthen integrity of Outreach Training Program

8/6/2009

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), in an effort to crack down on fraudulent trainers, is continuing to strengthen the integrity of its 36-year-old Outreach Training Program by publishing an “Outreach Trainer Watch List” of those who have had their trainer authorizations either revoked or suspended.

OSHA recently conducted an undercover investigation as part of its heightened effort to address fraudulent activity by trainers authorized through the OSHA Outreach Training Program. The investigation of a 10-hour course conducted by Don Barker, environmental health and safety director for Thor Construction in Las Vegas, revealed several examples of failure to comply with program guidelines. Barker’s infractions included submitting falsified information regarding the instructional time spent on the topics, failing to collect and retain required documentation and inappropriately advising students not to contact OSHA to report hazards.

OSHA revoked Barker’s Outreach Training authorization after he declined to appeal the decision and his name has been added to the “Watch List” on OSHA’s Web site. The “Watch List,” available at https://www.osha.gov/dte/outreach/construction_generalindustry/watchlist.html, will be updated weekly. OSHA is monitoring training programs and has provided a hotline at 847-297-4810 for individuals to file complaints about fraud and abuse.

“Trainers who fail to provide appropriate safety training will pay a stiff price for their fraudulent behavior,” said Jordan Barab, acting assistant secretary of labor for OSHA. “A tighter record control procedure has been instituted requiring trainers to sign their reports and certify the class was conducted in accordance with OSHA’s guidelines. Trainers face civil and criminal penalties under federal law if reports or certifications are found to have been falsified.”

Trainers are authorized by completing a one-week OSHA trainer course through an OSHA Training Institute Education Center. The trainers are then eligible to teach 10-hour programs that provide basic information to workers and employers about workplace hazards and OSHA, and 30-hour courses in construction, maritime and general industry safety and health hazards.

The voluntary Outreach Training Program has grown to a national network of more than 16,000 independent trainers eligible to teach workers and employers about workplace hazards and provide OSHA 10-hour course completion cards. The program’s success has prompted some states and cities to legislate a requirement that workers complete training to earn an OSHA 10-hour card as a condition of employment.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, OSHA’s role is to promote safe and healthful working conditions for America’s working men and women by setting and enforcing standards; and providing training, outreach and education. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.

###

U.S. Department of Labor releases are accessible on the Internet at http://www.dol.gov. The information in this news release will be made available in alternate format (large print, Braille, audiotape or disc) from the Central Office of Assistive Services and Technology upon request. Please specify which news release when placing your request at 202-693-7828 or TTY 202-693-7755. The Labor Department is committed to providing America’s employers and employees with easy access to understandable information on how to comply with its laws and regulations. For more information, please visit http://www.dol.gov/compliance.

SCAFFOLD INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION HONORS INDUSTRY PROFESSIONALS

8/4/2009

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Laurie Weber, Associate Director

Scaffold Industry Association

laurie@scaffold.org (816) 595.4860

SCAFFOLD INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION HONORS INDUSTRY PROFESSIONALS

Ten prominent members of the scaffolding and access community were recognized with awards for their dedication and service to the Scaffold Industry Association at the industry awards dinner of the Scaffold Industry Association’s 37th Annual Conference & Exposition in San Francisco on July 23, 2009.

“The SIA is fortunate to have passionate, hard-working members who are theblood-line of our association. Every year, it is with pride that we have the opportunity to recognize such individuals and their accomplishments by means of long-standing awards!” said SIA President, Bill Breault. Congratulations to the following winners.

Coupling Pin Award Winner

Randy Moody, Brock Group, Baytown, TX

Hall of Fame Award

Marty Coughlin, WACO Scaffolding & Equipment, Cleveland, OH

Outstanding Chapter President Award

Chris Moody, Brock Group, Baytown, TX

Outstanding Company Contribution Award

ThyssenKrupp Safway, Waukesha, WI

Outstanding Council Chairperson Award

Greg Janda, Alimek Hek, Dallas, GA

Outstanding Service Award

Gene Morgan, Mdm Scaffolding Services, Grapevine, TX

D. Victor Saleeby Award

Dave Glabe, DH Glabe & Associates, Westminister, CO

Spirit Award

John Miller, Millstone Corporation, Upper Marlboro, MD

“Unsung Hero” Award

Wendy Larison, Urban Scaffolding Ltd., Edmonton, Alberta

ATI of the Year

WACO Scaffolding & Equipment, Cleveland, OH

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 www.scaffold.org.

American National Standards Institute Approves Standard Revision

7/31/2009

The Scaffold Industry Association announces approval of the revision of ANSI/SIA A92.2-2001.

ANSI/SIA A92.2-2009 Vehicle-Mounted Elevating and Rotating Aerial Devices was approved by the ANSI Board of Standards Review on July 14, 2009. The standard will become effective six months from the publication date. Visit www.scaffold.org for the latest updates on date the standard will be available for purchase.

The SIA would like to thank members of the A92 Main Committee and the A92.2 subcommittee of all the hard work and dedication to ensure the revision of A92.2 Vehicle-Mounted Elevating and Rotating Aerial Devices is up-to-date and addresses the continual evolution of safe work practices. We applaud your continued efforts and support!

June Construction Retreats 7 Percent

7/29/2009

June Construction Retreats 7 Percent

New York, N.Y. – July 21, 2009 – New construction starts in June dropped 7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $385.4 billion, according to McGraw-Hill Construction, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies. Nonresidential building weakened further, and public works construction fell back after its elevated May pace. In contrast, residential building showed improvement in June, continuing to edgeupward after the very depressed activity reported at the outset of 2009.

The June statistics lowered the Dodge Index to 82 (2000=100), down from May’s 87, and essentially returning the Index to April’s level of 81. “The construction start figures appear to be moving more towards an up-and-down pattern,” stated Robert A. Murray, vice president of economic affairs for McGraw-Hill Construction. “The bad news is that the overall volume of activity remains very weak; the good news is that if an up-and-down pattern is in fact being established, it marks a shift from the steady decline witnessed during the second half of 2008 and into early 2009. Just how this pattern for total construction evolves during the second half of 2009 will depend on what’s likely to be a varied performance by major construction sector. Nonresidential building, hampered by the weak economy and tight bank lending, should see further erosion. On the plus side, the boost to public works from the federal stimulus funding has only begun to emerge, with more gains to come. And, single family housing has seen modest strengthening during the spring, suggesting that the bottom for this structure type was reached earlier in 2009.”

Nonresidential building in June slipped 4% to $151.6 billion (annual rate). The commercial categories experienced a further loss of momentum, with warehouses down 4%, office buildings down 7%, stores down 12%, and hotels down 25%. The public buildings category, which had been lifted in May by the start of two large courthouse projects and two large detention facilities, fell 47% in June. Reduced contracting was alsoreported in June for churches, down 14%; and transportation terminals, down 38%.

The nonresidential downturn in June was cushioned by a 17% rebound for the educational building category. June featured the start of several large medical research facilities, including a $225 million project in New York NY and a $111 million project in Salt Lake City UT. In addition, several large high school projects reached groundbreaking in June, including two located in Illinois – an $89 million high school in DeKalb and an $88 million high school addition in Naperville. The amusement and recreational category in June jumped 75% after a weak May, lifted by the start of a $270 million performing arts facility in Las Vegas NV. Healthcare facilities in June improved 4%, helped by a $220 million hospital expansion in Ft. Worth TX. The manufacturing plant category also registered growth in June, climbing 55%, with the support comingfrom the start of a $676 million semiconductor plant in upstate New York.

Nonbuilding construction, at $120.8 billion (annual rate), dropped 20% in June. The prior month had included $2.5 billion related to segments of the Keystone oil pipeline in the Midwest; if this project is excluded from the May statistics nonbuilding construction in June would be up 1%. Highway construction in June advanced 13%, rising for the fourth straight month. June included the start of the $613 million I-405 Sepulveda Pass widening project in California, and federal stimulus funds are now contributing in general to a pickup in highway construction. Bridge construction in June did settle back 15%, although the comparison is to an especially strong May that included the start of a large bridge renovation project in New York NY. For the environmental public works categories, sewer construction grew 14% in June, river/harbor development held steady, and water supply projects dropped 20%. The electric utility category in June rose15%, helped by the start of a $619 million power plant in Virginia.

Residential building in June advanced 8% to $112.9 billion (annual rate). Single family housing climbed 9%, continuing to move upward after the very depressed activity reported back in January. The single family pace in June was still 20% below the monthly average for 2008. By region, single family housing showed June gains in the South Central, up 18%; the South Atlantic, up 8%; the West, up 6%; and the Midwest, up5%; while the Northeast settled back 1%. Multifamily housing in June was unchanged from May, holding at a very weak volume that was 63% below the monthly average for 2008. The number of large multifamily projects has fallen sharply – during the first six months of 2009, there were a total of two multifamily projects valued at $100 million or greater that reached groundbreaking. By comparison, during the first six months of 2008 there were 18 such projects that reached groundbreaking, and the first six months of 2007saw 21 such projects reach groundbreaking.

On an unadjusted basis, total construction during the first six months of 2009 came in at $195.4 billion, down 36% from the same period a year ago. The year-to-date comparisons are likely to remain sharply negative over the next two months, and then become less severe as the comparison is made against the steep decline in construction activity that took place during the fall of 2008. By major sector, residential building continued to show the largest year-to-date slide, falling 46%. Nonresidential building was not far behind, dropping 41%, as the result of this year-to-date performance – commercial, down 55%; manufacturing, down 76%; and institutional, down 21%. Nonbuilding construction in the first six month of 2009 was down 16% from a year ago, with public works slipping 6% while electric utilities plunged 49%. By region, total construction during the first six months of 2009 showed this behavior – the Northeast, down 43%; the West and South Atlantic, each down 37%; the South Central, down 34%; and the Midwest, down 31%.

Added perspective is provided by looking at twelve-month moving totals, in this case the twelve months ending June 2009 versus the twelve months ending June 2008. On this basis, total construction is down 27%, reflecting this performance – residential building, down 43%; nonresidential building, down 25%; and nonbuilding construction, down 6%. By region, the twelve months ending June 2009 revealed this pattern for total construction compared to the previous twelve months – the South Atlantic, down 33%; the West and Northeast, each down 30%; and the South Central and Midwest, each down 20%.

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OSHA offers tips on working safely in hot weather

6/23/2009

WASHINGTON – Those hot, hazy days of summer are approaching. The heat can be especially harmful for those who work outdoors in direct sunlight or in hot environments, making them susceptible to heat-induced illnesses such as heat stress, heat exhaustion or the more serious heat stroke.

“Working in extreme temperatures is not only uncomfortable, it can be life-threatening,” said acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Jordan Barab. “As we move into the summer months, it is important for workers and their employers to minimize the chances of heat-induced illnesses, and imperative that they recognize the signs of heat stress and take proper precautions to reduce the chances of illness or death.”

High temperature and humidity, physical exertion and lack of sufficient water intake can lead to heat –related stress. Symptoms of heat exhaustion or heat stroke include confusion, irrational behavior, loss of consciousness, abnormally high body temperature and hot, dry skin.

OSHA advises workers to take preventive measures such as reducing physical exertion and wearing light, loose-fitting clothing. The agency advises employers to provide workers with water and regular rest periods in a cool recovery area.

“Protecting Workers from the Effects of Heat” and “Working Outdoors in Warm Climates” are OSHA fact sheets that explain heat stress and provide recommendations to protect workers from exposure to ultraviolet radiation. Employers and workers will find more practical tips for guarding against UV radiation in “Protecting Yourself in the Sun,” a pocket-sized card addressing various forms of skin cancer. These publications are free and can be downloaded from OSHA’s Publications page.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, OSHA’s role is to assure safe and healthful working conditions for America’s working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, outreach and education. For more information, visit www.osha.gov.

SIA Presents to Arizona ASSE Construction Section

6/19/2009

On Friday June 12^th the Scaffold Industry Association and Action Scaffold Equipment presented to the ASSE Arizona Chapter Construction Section members. Noe Vallejo, Action Scaffold & Equipment gave a detailed presentation of the Hazard Awareness training to those in attendance. Elouise Schultz, SIA Membership Director introduced the association and the many membership benefits available to those individuals who are responsible for scaffold & access safety. Companies in attendance were local and national General Contractors, Sub-Contractors, Safety Professionals, and insurance and state fund representatives. Immediately following was a Q&A for both Noe & Elouise on safety issues that are affecting contractors within scaffold & access equipment.

Construction Section Chairman Clinton Bragg, Kitchell Contractors, commented that more subcontractors could benefit form the hazard awareness presentation. Clinton is willing to work with SIA for future ASSE Construction Safety meetings for presentations of scaffold & access equipment. Discussions to present on Mast Climbing safety is being considered for the fall schedule.

May Construction Climbs 7 Percent

6/17/2009

May Construction Climbs 7 Percent

New York, N.Y. – June 16, 2009 – At a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $412.3 billion, new construction starts in May advanced 7% from the previous month, according to McGraw-Hill Construction, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies. May’s strengthening was led by a substantial increase for public works, which featured a major pipeline project as well as gains for highways, bridges, sewers, and water supply systems. Meanwhile, housing stayed flat and nonresidential building resumed its downward trend after the brief upturn reported in April.

The May statistics lifted the Dodge Index to 87 (2000=100), compared to 82 for April. The pace of new construction starts had fallen steadily from mid-2008 through February, but since then has shown slight if hesitant improvement. However, the level of activity registered during March, April, and May remains weak by recent standards – up 4% from the average for January and February, yet still down 10% from last year’s fourth quarter. “The pattern of construction starts over the past three months suggests that a bottom is being established,” stated Robert A. Murray, vice president of economic affairs for McGraw-Hill Construction. “Single family housing now seems to be leveling off after its lengthy correction, and public works is picking up speed, with more to come given the lift that’s just beginning to emerge from the federal stimulus funding. This will be offset, however, by further weakness for nonresidential building, involving its commercial, manufacturing, and institutional segments.”

Nonbuilding construction in May surged 28% to $149.1 billion (annual rate). The “miscellaneous” public works category (including such project types as pipelines and rail work) soared 91%, with the push coming from $2.5 billion related to segments of the Keystone oil pipeline project covering the states of South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, and Illinois. If this massive project is excluded from the May statistics, then the 28% increase for nonbuilding construction would be reduced to a 2% gain, and the 7% increase for total construction would become a 1% decline. The “miscellaneous” public works category in May was also helped by the start of a $315 million mass transit rail line extension in Miami FL. Aside from May’s strength for pipeline and rail work, May also included gains for other types of public works. On the transportation side, highways advanced 12% while bridges climbed 54%, with the latter helped by the start of a $366 million bridge renovation project in New York NY. On the environmental side, growth was reported for sewers and water supply systems, up a respective 13% and 12%, but river/harbor development fell 32% after heightened April activity. Electric utility construction in May grew 5%, aided by the start of a $382 million transmission line project in Virginia and West Virginia, as well as by the start of a $200 million wind farm in Iowa.

Residential building, at $102.8 billion (annual rate), was essentially unchanged in May from the previous month. Single family housing in May grew 2%, and has now shown improvement in dollar terms for four straight months. Even with this improvement, the volume of activity continues to be very weak, with May down 28% from the monthly average for 2008, itself a depressed year for single family housing. “Recent months have offered more evidence that single family housing has reached bottom, whether looking at the level of starts or home sales,” noted Murray. “While this represents a noteworthy change from the steady declines that were reported over the past three years, the large amount of home foreclosures still underway will continue to weigh down the single family market for some time.” By region, single family housing in May showed gains in the Midwest, up 14%; the South Central, up 6%; and the Northeast, up 2%; but declines in the West, down 2%; and the South Atlantic, down 6%. Offsetting the modest increase for single family housing in May was a 13% decline for multifamily housing. While single family housing appears to be reaching bottom, the same has not yet occurred for multifamily housing, which has registered declines in eight out of the past ten months.

Nonresidential building in May dropped 4% to $160.4 billion (annual rate). Much of the weakness for nonresidential building took place on the institutional side, as school construction fell 8% and healthcare facilities plunged 35%. The healthcare facilities category in the first three months of 2009 showed diminished contracting after a record 2008, followed by a brief rebound in April. The pullback in May indicates that the downward trend for healthcare construction has resumed. Amusement-related projects, such as theaters and sports arenas, retreated 23% in May. Several institutional categories reported greater contracting in May, such as churches, up 27%; transportation terminals, up 37%; and public buildings, up 51%. The public buildings category in May was supported by the start of two large courthouse projects in Florida ($224 million) and New York ($173 million), and two large detention facilities in Alabama ($184 million) and New York ($133 million). The manufacturing plant category had a particularly weak May, sliding 61%.

The commercial categories in May ran counter to their downward trend that’s been underway over the past year. Store construction, which has seen a particularly steep drop after peaking in 2007, held steady in May. Both warehouses and hotels showed gains from very weak April activity, with warehouses up 5% and hotels up 31%. Office construction in May climbed 51%, lifted by the start of a $347 million office tower in New York NY and a $99 million officer tower in Seattle WA. The volume of office construction in May was still depressed relative to the past year, as it came in 35% below the monthly average for this category in 2008.

On an unadjusted basis, total construction during the January-May period of 2009 was reported at $154.2 billion, down 38% from the same period a year ago. The year-to-date declines are likely to stay substantial through mid-year, but then become less severe during the second half of 2009 given the comparison to the sharp erosion in construction activity that took place in the second half of 2008. By sector, nonbuilding construction for the first five months of 2009 showed a relatively small decline, retreating 14%. The downturns for the other two sectors were considerable –residential building, down 49%; and nonresidential building, down 43%. By region, total construction during the first five months of 2009 showed the largest reductions in the Northeast, down 45%; and the South Atlantic, down 41%. Not far behind were the West, down 39%; the South Central, down 34%; and the Midwest, down 29%.

Added perspective is made possible by looking at twelve-month moving totals, in this case the twelve months ending May 2009 versus the twelve months ending May 2008. On this basis, total construction is down 25%, with the smallest decline by sector shown by nonbuilding construction, down just 1%. Larger declines were reported for residential building, down 43%; and nonresidential building, down 23%. By region, the twelve months ending May 2009 showed this performance for total construction versus the prior twelve months – the South Atlantic, down 34%; the West, down 31%; the Northeast, down 26%; the South Central, down 16%; and the Midwest, down 15%.

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April Construction Slips One Percent

5/21/2009

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NEWS RELEASE

April Construction Slips One Percent

New York, N.Y. – May 19, 2009 – The value of new construction starts fell 1% in April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $386.6 billion, according to McGraw-Hill Construction, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies. The loss of momentum was due to a slower pace for public works construction, which had been lifted in March by the start of several large pipeline and rail projects. At the same time, nonresidential building in April picked up the pace after the very weak activity reported during the prior two months, and residential building was helped by improvement for single family housing.

April’s data lowered the Dodge Index to 82 (2000=100), after the March reading of 83. The level of contracting as shown by the Dodge Index witnessed a steady retreat from mid-2008 through February, to be followed by a gain in March and then April’s slight setback. “The pattern of construction starts over the past two months suggests a transition from extended declines to more of an up-and-down pattern, which generally takes place when a bottom gets established,” stated Robert A. Murray, vice president of economic affairs for McGraw-Hill Construction. “This process of establishing a bottom is still in its early stages, and will be affected by how different construction sectors perform in coming months. The impact from the stimulus bill on public works construction is just beginning to emerge, with this sector expected to see more strength as 2009 proceeds. Single family housing remains at a very low volume, but the worst of its correction appears to have passed. For nonresidential building, there’s been the occasional display of resilience by such institutional structure types as healthcare facilities and public buildings, but the downward trend for the commercial structure types is still very much underway.”

Nonbuilding construction in April dropped 19% to $114.7 billion (annual rate), following a 28% jump in March. The “miscellaneous” public works category in March had soared 318%, reflecting the start of two large natural gas pipeline segments valued at a combined $2.6 billion as well as the start of a $1.6 billion rail project. While April also included major pipeline projects, such as a $485 million segment of a petroleum pipeline in South Dakota, the comparison to an exceptional March produced a 60% decline for the “miscellaneous” public works category. In contrast, most of the other public works categories showed stronger activity in April. River/harbor development advanced 101%, lifted by the start of a $342 million seepage barrier in Kentucky. Water supply construction climbed 14%, helped by the start of a $90 million water treatment facility in California. Highways and bridges, the two categories expected to see the most immediate benefit from the federal stimulus bill, increased a respective 10% and 6% in April. Large highway projects valued in excess of $50 million were started in Tennessee and California, and a $178 million viaduct rehabilitation project was started in New York. Having little effect on the nonbuilding total in April was the electric utility category, down just 1% from March. Large electric power projects in April included a $300 million gas-fired power plant in Florida and a $170 million wind farm in West Virginia.

Nonresidential building, at $166.4 billion (annual rate), grew 9% in April. The manufacturing building category provided much of the upward push, surging 222%, due to the start of a $1 billion upgrade to a centrifuge plant (for uranium enrichment) in Ohio. Excluding this large project, the manufacturing building category in April would be down 7% while the increase for nonresidential building would be lowered to 1%. There was still support to the nonresidential total in April coming from the institutional categories. Most noteworthy was a 49% increase for healthcare facilities, pushed upward by four large hospital projects located in Indiana ($350 million), Illinois ($129 million), Texas ($125 million), and Louisiana ($121 million). Murray noted, “After reaching an all-time high in 2008, the healthcare facilities category in early 2009 appeared to be in sharp retreat; April’s rebound suggests that the correction may turn out to be more moderate.” The public building category in April advanced 19%, aided by the start of a $289 million military headquarters facility in North Carolina and a $259 million courthouse tower in Arizona. Amusement-related work in April edged up 3%, but diminished activity was reported for churches, down 1%; and educational buildings, down 5%. A more substantial 35% decline was reported for transportation terminals in April.

The commercial structure types generally showed weakness in April. The depressed retail industry continues to have an adverse impact on construction, with April seeing declines for stores, down 10%; and warehouses, down 34%. Office construction was also considerably weaker in April, falling 22%. Running counter to the downward trend for commercial building in April was the hotel category, up 8%, although April still came in

68% below the average monthly pace for this category in 2008.

Residential building in April climbed 8% to $105.5 billion (annual rate). The improvement was the result of a 13% gain for single family housing, which posted its second increase out of the past three months. This follows an extended period of decline from the start of 2006 through the start of 2009, when decreased activity was reported in 31 out of 36 months. The single family pattern in April showed strengthening in all five major regions – the West, up 23%; the Midwest, up 20%; the South Atlantic and Northeast, each up 9%; and the South Central, up 8%. While the extended slide for single family housing may now be coming to a close, the correction for multifamily housing was still present in April, as contracting dropped an additional 11%. By region, the April weakness for multifamily housing was located in the South Atlantic, down 27%; the Northeast, down 18%; and the South Central, down 10%; while some improvement was shown in the West and Midwest, up 3% and 12%, respectively.

On an unadjusted basis, total construction during the January-April period of 2009 was $117.2 billion, down 39% from the same period a year ago. This was the result of the following year-to-date performance by sector – nonresidential building, down 42%; residential building, down 50%; and nonbuilding construction, down 20%. By geography, total construction during the first four months of 2009 showed the steepest drop in the Northeast, down 55%; followed by the South Atlantic, down 43%; the West, down 37%; the South Central, down 34%; and the Midwest, down 26%.

Additional perspective comes from looking at twelve-month moving totals, in this case the twelve months ending April 2009 versus the twelve months ending April 2008. On this basis, total construction is down 23%, as the result of this pattern by sector – nonresidential building, down 16%; residential building, down 42%; and nonbuilding construction, down 4%. By region, the twelve months ending April 2009 showed the following behavior for total construction relative to the previous twelve months – the South Atlantic, down 34%; the West, down 30%; the Northeast, down 26%; the South Central, down 13%; and the Midwest, down 10%.

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