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What are Cherry Pickers?
Mobile elevating work platforms (MEWPs), or otherwise known as cherry pickers, are a type of aerial work platform that involves a bucket or surface at the end of a hydraulic lifting system. The bucket of the cherry picker lift is attached to a telescopic arm, which can be raised and positioned.
Cherry pickers are named as such because they were initially used for picking fruits; However, a lot of modifications were done so that these cherry pickers can also be used to do many other tasks such as routine maintenance, lifting workers and their equipment, stock picking, and construction jobs.
Benefits of cherry pickers include providing more safety and efficiency as compared to traditional equipment such as ladders and rope swings.
What are the Uses of MEWPs?
Cherry pickers are used for tasks involving having to work at great heights. They can be used for maintenance of buildings. For example, one can use a cherry picker for a building that needs cleaning or repainting. A ladder can also be used but it lacks mobility, security, and safety of moving to any part of the building, all of which are provided for by cherry pickers.
Another application can be in telephone or electricity pole services. Cherry pickers guarantee that the workers can reach the area to be worked on in a safe manner. These machines can be also be used in filming events wherein high angles of the camera is required, or when providing the audience a bird’s eye view of an event.
Fire services make use of cherry pickers so that multiple rescues can take place at the same time. Using these machines help firemen in the sense that they do not need to lift people who need assistance over their shoulders anymore before returning to the ground since they already have a cherry picker with a platform.
What are the Different Types of Cherry Pickers?
There are several types of cherry pickers, each one differs according to its physical features and uses: boom lifts have telescopic booms, articulating booms, spider lifts, and towable booms, while there are also mast lifts and stock pickers.
Booms are the most popular form of cherry pickers. Telescopic or straight booms are designed for reaching exceptional heights. Articulating or jointed booms are for reaching positions that are not easily reached by straight lifts. Compact crawler lifts or spider lifts have an up-and-over reach for areas with difficult positions, and outriggers that level on uneven surfaces. Towable booms can be transported easily and safely since it only needs a trailer hitch.
Mast lifts and stock pickers are vertical boom lifts that extend up and down along a straight mast boom. These allow workers to operate hands-free and provides them more space to work in.
What Are the Limitations of Cherry Pickers?
Cherry pickers are designed specifically for personnel access. These machines should not be used to replace the role of proper lifting equipment. They are also for jobs where access is needed only for a short time. If a longer time is needed for a job, then scaffolding or scaffold towers may be a better option rather than cherry pickers. Additionally, if the job only involves needing to go straight up, a scissor lift can be used instead.
Operating a cherry picker can be risky. The operator of this machine must need proper training before being allowed to handle the machine regularly. MEWP hazards should always be considered and be kept in mind before operating these machines.
What are Other Things to Consider When Choosing a Cherry Picker?
There are a lot of factors and considerations when choosing a cherry picker. One of these is the type of cherry picker needed. As mentioned previously, each type of cherry picker performs a specific task. Being aware of the type of machine needed for the task saves a lot of money for your business. Another consideration is the height and reach that the cherry picker can attain. This minimizes the risk of accidents from happening in the workplace. The kind of working environment that the cherry picker will be used in should also be determined. For example, live power lines and cables should be taken into account, as well as the possibility of falling objects in the working area. If the machine is needed indoors, then proper ventilation is a must.