Application of suspended platform in aerial work

Senior outer wall project includes building cleaning, exterior wall cleaning, curtain wall clean, high-rise exterior wall paint and aerial advertising installation etc. This paper mainly introduces the application of suspended platform in external wall cleaning.

According to the characteristics of high-rise building, the main equipments that are used in exterior wall cleaning include three kinds as below:

1. Building Maintenance Unit, also is called BMU

2. Suspended power platform or suspended platform

3. Hanger plate.

The BMU is special equipment for outer wall cleaning in high-rise building. Its main purpose is cleaning exterior wall of modern high-rise building, which change the traditional suspended work operation into automatic, efficient, high quality mechanical operation. It is the latest generation of powerful outer wall cleaning robot, and fills up the blank from domestic to overseas in high-rise building exterior wall maintenance. In China, some of senior high-grade constructions which were built in 80-1990s were designed by foreign architect and they had considered the installation of BMU since then and adopt abroad BMU to maintenance building. These efforts have laid a good foundation for building cleaning. But since 1990s, there are many buildings had not considered the application of BMU when they were designed and some of them can not be installed BMU, at the same time, BUM does not belong to standard products and also often bring higher cost, all of those lead to BMU has not been widely used.

Because of hanger plate’s flexibility, it is widely adopted by world. However, as its risk in operation and often appear accident, the hanger plate has been more and more replaced by suspended platform. We believe this is a tendency of development. Now, including China, many places have already stipulated that in aerial work cleaning, workers must use suspended platform (www.suspended-access.com)and forbid the use of hanger plate.

The suspended platform is a new type of aloft working machinery. Because of it’s operate smoothly, comfort, safety, energy saving etc, it has been widely used in domestic decoration and cleaning industry.

The main materials of exterior wall include glass curtain wall, composite aluminum-plastic plate, marble, granite, mosaic, ceramics, drying sticky stone, granitic plaster stone and so on. Due to the dust, grease and erosion caused by acid rain (fog), the new buildings often become smudgy in short time and make so more in some serious air pollution city.

According to the weight-bearing ability, the suspended platform can be divided into 1000kgs, 800kgs, 600kgs, 500kgs and 250kgs etc. According to the length of platform, it contains 10m, 7.5m, 6m, 4m, 2m and so on. The length of platform can be assembled to suit for different request. Now the main types that are usually used in cleaning industry include ZLP630 and ZLP250 and the length ranged from 6 to 10 meters is more popular.

Preparation work before construction

1.       Check the work site and assure the plan.

Check the roof condition and ensure that it can be installed suspended platform and sure the movement has no obstacle like neon lights and billboard. The engineers confirm well construction plan.

2.  To ensure the construction environment without wind, snow and high temperature, low temperature phenomenon. The wind in site should less than 6 levels.

3.  Prepare cleaning tools such as bucket, gun, towels and sucker etc.

4.  Two workers carry cleaning tools and supplies into platform and fasten safety belts.

Do safety inspection before operation.

1.            To check the each parts in suspended platform, exam if the fasteners, fittings, hoister, and safety protection devices in good state and confirm no hidden dangerous before work.

2.            To check whether the suspension mechanism installed on roof, fasteners, drawing rope are firm and confirm no hidden trouble in operation.

3.            To check the length of safety rope and see if there were any damage or broken stocks on it.

4.            Fixed the safety rope and confirm the length is more than building height.

5.            To check the insurance belt employee used no damage.

6.            To check if the safety lock are flexible and reliable.

7.            To check if the fixed position where the safety rope joined on the top of building is firmly. 

8.            To check if the staff dresses meet the following requirements: wearing a helmet and wearing long-sleeved work jacket and long pants. In corrosive environment, let workers wear corrosion-resistant clothes and shoes with soft bottom, which also features of corrosion-resistant.

9.            To check if the junction between safety rope and building parapet has the liners. If found no, we shall be stop working immediately.

10.         The employee’s self-lock device installed on insurance belt should be knotted on safety rope, not buckle in suspended platform.

11.         Please set up the fence in operation area and arrange one ground security officer to preventing pedestrians.

If no security officer or protecting fence, we should stop the work.

12.         Check the attitude of workers who operate in top of buildings, if have some problems, stop working.

Operation process

1. Use water gun to wash corners and remove dust.

2. Dip spreader into barrels and after it fully absorb sanitizer, we smear evenly on the surface of glass. Later use wiper scrape glass up and down including window frame and corners. Ensure to pull crossly and no miss some small place and then use towel dry it.

3. After finishing one position, let the platform move to the below site and when end the cleaning from top to bottom, we turn left or right to adjacent position and continue to work from top to bottom again.

4. After finishing total work, sorting machines and tools and remove fences and billboard and clean the water on ground.

5. Cleaning and maintenance equipments and after removing dust and dirt we pack the device in warehouse.

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