A Safety Alert Protocol has been developed by the UK Strategic Forum Plant Safety Group (SFPSG) MEWPs Group. The Protocol describes a voluntary standard for Safety Alerts issued by contractors and others who have incidents they believe may be related to the design, manufacture, maintenance or use of MEWPs.

More than 450 industry professionals gathered on 4 April 2017 in London, UK, to honour the winners of the International Awards for Powered Access (IAPAs). Jointly organised by Access International and IPAF, the IAPAs celebrate best practice and excellence in the powered access industry.

Chris Wraith, IPAF Technical & Safety Executive has been named as a RoSPA 2017 Guardian Angel for making a demonstrable difference in the world of health and safety and accident prevention, through personal initiative, diligence, enthusiasm and commitment.

The newly elected President of the International Powered Access Federation (IPAF) has used his inaugural address to call for the industry to attract more young people by creating apprenticeships and raising the profile of the career opportunities on offer.

Demand for IPAF training continued to rise in 2016, and almost 160,000 Pal Cards were issued across the year as a whole. IPAF training take-up saw pronounced growth in the Gulf States, New Zealand and Switzerland. In the UK and Ireland, nearly 10,000 more people completed IPAF training than in 2015.

Powered Access rental companies that are existing or future members of the International Powered Access Federation (IPAF) will soon have to pass a more stringent vetting and auditing process in the UK, following a resolution of IPAF’s UK Country Council that was approved at the organisation’s global AGM earlier this year.

More than 300 delegates from across Asia and further afield used their attendance at the IPAF Asia Conference in Changsha, China, to affirm their commitment to safety in the powered access industry by signing a pledge to equip all operators of boom-type Mobile Elevating Work Platforms (MEWPs) with a safety harness.

There are three new posters in the Andy Access safety series: "Danger, keep well clear"; "Do not jump out of the platform"; and "Register pre-owned machines".

The global Mobile Elevating Work Platform (MEWP) fleet grew strongly in the past year, with the US market exceeding expectations and steady growth throughout Europe for the first time since the economic downturn, driven mainly by a resurgent construction industry and falling unemployment, according to the latest annual global rental market report from the International Powered Access Federation (IPAF).

The IPAF Summit and the International Awards for Powered Access (IAPAs) is a perennial highlight of the powered access calendar, and in 2018 the event returns to Miami, hosted at the Hilton Miami Downtown, Florida, US. Don’t miss out on the access industry’s most important annual celebration, combining great educational and networking opportunities, with the traditional IPAF networking event on the eve of the conference on 7 March, the Summit and IAPAs gala dinner on 8 March, and fascinating site visits on the morning of 9 March.

Across 2017, IPAF’s Back to Basics safety campaign focusing on identifying and mitigating typical risk scenarios when operating Mobile Elevating Work Platform (MEWP) equipment worldwide has actively inspired and informed safety messages and key industry events from Las Vegas and Amsterdam to Shanghai and Abu Dhabi.

A selection of 3D virtual Mobile Elevating Work Platforms (MEWPs) and Mast Climbing Work Platforms (MCWPs) is now available in the National Building Information Modelling (BIM) Library with more to follow thanks to the efforts of experts from the International Powered Access Federation (IPAF).

Key spokespeople for the International Powered Access Federation (IPAF) are working closely with a new all-party working group of Westminster MPs,­­­ whose aim is to cut the alarming number of workplace fatalities in the UK that are caused by falls from height. IPAF president Nick Selley and UK Market General Manager Richard Whiting attended the inaugural meeting on 12 December of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Working at Height at the UK Houses of Parliament in London.