PASMA, the trade body representing the mobile access-tower industry, has launched a Publicly Available Specification (PAS) for the design of low-level work platforms, also known as podiums or pulpits.
The new safety standard, PAS 250, is facilitated by BSI Standards and published under licence from the British Standards Institution.
Setting out minimum safety performance requirements, the specification covers all low-level work platforms with one working platform and side protection, designed for use by one person with a maximum working-platform height of under 2.5 metres.
According to the PASMA, podiums have previously lacked the specific design and performance requirements that the new specification sets out. This has led to some inferior equipment entering the UK industry despite safer options being available.
The new standard introduces a specific requirement for stability and resistance to overturning.€ﾨOther requirements cover specifications for materials, guardrail design, the integrity of mobility devices, toe-boards, and the content of labels and user guides. These requirements are assessed through a series of tests, which confirm that podiums are in line with the specification.
Sponsoring PAS 250 is the final step in PASMA’s three-point plan to ensure that podiums are built to a consistent standard of safety.
The organisation’s managing director Peter Bennett said: “Our three-step plan involved creating a low-level training course and a guidance DVD to ensure that the people using podiums fully understood the need for safety at low levels. This new safety standard completes the plan by making the equipment itself as consistently safe as possible.”€ﾨ
Championed by PASMA’s technical committee, the standard was developed in consultation with the Association of British Certification Bodies, the HSE, Hire Association Europe, the Ladder Association and the UK Contractors Group.
PAS 250 is available to purchase through both the PASMA online shop — www.pasma.co.uk/online-shop/ — and the BSI online shop — http://shop.bsigroup.com/pas250
See also the PAS 250 FAQs section of PASMA’s website.
Hi Richard, I’m afraid the resale price is set by BSI, but to get the main points for understanding the standard you can check out the PAS 250 FAQ’s section of our site (pasma.co.uk/info/pas-250-faqs/). Among other things it explains the product requirements and how they are tested. I hope that helps some.
Michael
What a shame that the standard is only available for a whopping £100. I’m sure there are many people in small companies who’d benefit from understanding the standard but who can’t justify £100.