Brian Parker has been announced as the new Head of Safety & Technical for the International Powered Access Federation (IPAF). He IPAF joins from AFI-Uplift Ltd and takes up post on 2 October, reporting to Peter Douglas, CEO and Managing Director.

What does the analysis of accident data from around the world teach us about safety in powered access? That is the important question under consideration in an upcoming instalment of an ongoing series of free webinars delivered by IPAF and guest experts.

IPAF is urging key stakeholders to join a virtual APPG meeting, which takes place via Zoom on 9 Sept. As a member of the Access Industry Forum, IPAF plays a lead role in this cross-party inquiry into accidents and fatalities while working at height in the UK.

After months of lobbying, the European Materials-Handling Federation and its partners have succeeded in gaining EU approval for a request to delay implementation of new regulations concerning the production and sale of non-road-mobile machinery (NRMM).

IPAF has helped to introduce ISO-certified MEWP operator training to Sweden, with member company Lipac Liftar now offering PAL Card training for scissor and boom-type equipment.

The International Powered Access Federation (IPAF) has modified its eLearning operator theory module to include facial recognition technology currently deployed as a security measure on its MEWPs for Managers eLearning course. By utilising the camera on the candidate’s device or computer, this ensures only the trainee under assessment is able to undergo the eLearning.

New guidance has been issued by the UK HSE, following pressure from IPAF to clarify what should happen to machines on work sites that require an update to their safety certificates while the country is still in partial lockdown during the coronavirus outbreak.

The IPAF Summit & IAPAs 2020, scheduled to be held in London, UK, will now be held over until next year, owing to ongoing uncertainty around the coronavirus pandemic.

IPAF Members are invited to subscribe to No Falls Foundation Newsletter 'SAVING LIVES'

IPAF has assured its members and the wider industry that powered access operations remain a vital part of UK construction, facilities, processing and maintenance supply chains, and as such companies should continue to operate during the latest lockdown.

IPAF and the Scaffold & Access Industry Association (SAIA) have signed an agreement to work together to promote safety and training in powered access throughout the US, Canada and Mexico.

IPAF Members are being invited to make short videos or send in pictures, showing how they have helped their communities during the Covid-19 pandemic, for inclusion in the IPAF Summit and IAPA awards.

IPAF is pleased to welcome Alimak Group, the global mast-climbing work platform (MCWP) and construction hoist manufacturer, as its fourth Sustaining Member.

IPAF is hosting a free webinar on the future of safe learning. The webinar looks at how COVID-19 has impacted training, how IPAF is responding and how employers and powered access operators can utilise different technologies to continue to learn safely.

IPAF is supporting from The No Falls Foundation, the first and only UK charity dedicated exclusively to the work at height sector, urging workers to ‘Be Safe, Don’t Fall, Stay Alive!’, as lockdown eases and UK construction activity begins to increase.

In response to new safety requirements due to COVID-19 and following IPAF’s guidance to training centres, Nationwide platforms has successfully completed an online instructor-led MEWPs for Managers course for construction contractor Skanska.

Robert Munn, Health & Safety Director, of the Expo 2020 world fair construction project has told IPAF’s fourth annual Middle East Convention that “everyone using a MEWP at Expo 2020 Dubai must have a PAL Card from IPAF.”

IPAF member companies and other owners and operators of powered access equipment are being warned about the risk of theft of machines following a report
of a Mobile Elevating Work Platform (MEWP) being stolen in Leicestershire.

Members of the International Powered Access Federation (IPAF) command unparalleled influence on global industry regulation and standards, safety messaging and technical and training expertise, as analysis of this year’s Access 50 power list shows that together the organisation’s largest member companies control well in excess of half a million Mobile Elevating Work Platforms (MEWPs) between them.

From 2019, the International Powered Access Federation (IPAF) will be able to offer the CSCS logo on its internationally recognised PAL Card operator licence in the UK, in line with a requirement from Build UK stipulating that access to construction sites should be restricted to holders of accredited licences or recognised competency cards.