Aerial Platform

An aerial work platform, also called an elevating work platform or EWP, lifts people, tools and materials to work at height. DJJ Equipment sells Hangcha access equipment in three types: scissor lifts, boom lifts and vertical mast lifts. Across the range, working heights run from about 6 m to 63 m and platform capacities from 120 kg to 1,150 kg, so the first step is choosing the type that suits the work.

Three types of aerial work platform

• Scissor lifts: a large deck that goes straight up, for work directly overhead with two or more people or materials. Our range reaches 18.2 m working height and carries up to 1,150 kg on the rough terrain diesel model.
• Boom lifts: a basket on an arm that reaches up and out, over machinery, roofs or a building line. Articulated and telescopic models reach working heights from 11.95 m to 63 m.
• Vertical mast lifts: a compact one-person platform for indoor maintenance, fit-outs and stocktakes, narrow enough for doorways and aisles, with working heights up to 14 m.

How to choose the type

Start with where the work is. If it sits directly above the machine and you need deck space, a scissor lift is usually the better buy. If you have to reach over something, such as plant, a roof edge or a fence line, only a boom lift can get the basket there. If the job is indoors, light and spread around a building, a mast lift moves between positions faster and fits where a scissor lift will not.

Then check the ground. Electric scissor and mast lifts suit smooth, firm floors. Rough terrain scissor lifts, crawler scissor lifts and diesel boom lifts are built for building sites, yards and uneven ground, with gradeability of up to 50% on the rough terrain scissor models.

Working height, platform height and capacity

Working height is usually quoted as the platform height plus about 2 m for a person standing on it, so a 16 m working height means a platform floor at about 14 m. Check which figure a specification quotes before you compare machines. Platform capacity covers people, tools and materials together, and some scissor lifts carry less on the extension deck than on the main deck.

Licences and training

In NSW, Queensland and WA, only a boom-type elevating work platform with a boom length of 11 metres or more needs a high risk work licence, class WP. Scissor lifts, vertical mast lifts and boom lifts under 11 m need no high risk work licence, but the business must still give operators suitable training, information and instruction.

Buying, transport and support

The access equipment on this page is listed for sale. If you only need a machine for a short job, ask our team about availability at your nearest branch. Most models carry a 12 month or 2,000 hour warranty, shown on each product page, and every machine we sell gets a pre-delivery inspection before it leaves us. Ask our team about transport options to your site, and plan for the machine's weight and stowed height on the way in.

Servicing, repairs and parts come from our branches in Silverwater, Meadowbrook and Bayswater, with on-site service within 50 km of each branch.

Before you choose, check:

• Working height, and whether the work is overhead or out to the side
• People, tools and materials on the platform
• Floor or ground conditions and slopes
• Doorways, lifts and access routes to the work area
• Who will operate it and what training or licence they need

Tell us the working height, the ground and what goes on the platform, and our team will recommend an access machine. Call 1800 355 388 or send an enquiry.