The technical answer to "is this scaffold strong enough?" is its load class. The scaffolding standard TS EN 12811 divides working platforms into six classes according to the load they can carry. Most incidents on site come not from the class being unknown, but from it being known and exceeded.
What does the class tell you?
The load class says how much load per square metre the platform can carry. Roughly:
- Class 1 covers access and inspection only; no material is stored.
- Classes 2-3 cover work with little material: painting, plaster, insulation.
- Classes 4-6 cover work where brick, block or stone is stacked on the platform; the higher the class, the more load can be carried.
Two other things change with the class: the width of the platform, and how many lifts may be loaded at the same time.
The real problem on site: class creep
The common scenario: the scaffold goes up for painting (a low class), that work finishes, and the next crew stacks brick on the same scaffold. The scaffold has not changed, but the load on it has doubled or tripled.
That is why a scaffold should be planned not for one job but for every job that will be done on that façade. It is why we ask, when preparing the take-off, whether material will be stacked on the platforms.
How many lifts may be loaded at once?
The standard allows only a limited number of lifts on the same vertical line to carry full load. When material is stacked on three levels at once, the standards see a load the class never allowed for, even if each level is within its class on its own.
What to ask when you request a quotation
- Which load class was this scaffold designed for?
- How wide are the platforms, and what work does that suit?
- How many lifts may be loaded at the same time?
- Will a separate lift be set aside for storing material?
Ask for the answers in writing. This information is the responsibility of the firm that erects the scaffold, and it belongs on the handover tag.
In our systems
Our flanged and H-frame systems are produced to the TS EN 12810 / TS EN 12811 series, and the platforms are deflection-tested at 2.5 m span under 100 kg. Which class goes onto which façade is decided per project, because even when material meets the standard, the class means nothing if the erection does not. We listed what to check at handover in a separate article.
Tell us what work will be done on your façade and we will determine the load class along with the take-off.