Scaffold is not always as simple as it looks and knowing what the right scaffold for your job is critical. There are many factors to consider before choosing the best type and design of scaffolding.
Frame & Brace, System Ring lock, or Aluminum Tube & Clamp?
Northstar focuses on offering 3 main types of scaffolding and each has different uses and specifications.
- Frame & Brace: easiest to install but is the least customizable because you are bound to certain measurements
- System Ring Lock: customizable and not as limited as Frame and Brace, requires experience and skill to install
- Aluminum Tube & Clamp: offers the highest degree of customization, requires the highest level of skill to design and install
Main Differences:
- Customization
- Skill required (and costs associated)
- Load Capacity
As you can see, the skill level required of installers is the major differentiator. Most tradespeople have at least seen or used frame and brace scaffold before, while the highly customizable tube and clamp system requires significant training and expertise around design and installation. This is generally what makes the Tube & Clamp option the most expensive.
Two of the three systems being system ring lock and frame and brace have a similar load capacity (Approx. 5000lbs per leg or 50-100psf platforms) However, Aluminum Tube & Clamp is approx. 1000lbs per leg so it is important to plan for the scaffolds intended use.
Main Similarities:
- Equipment rental costs
Northstar Access offers equipment rental costs that are comparable across all three types, but the labour associated with install is where the prices differentiate.
Frame & Brace and System Ring Lock scaffold can carry much more load than aluminium Tube & Clamp. Which means that they can be built much higher and used for jobs that require materials to be stacked on it such as bricklaying. Frame & Brace and Ring Lock System scaffold is what you’ll see around building sites for multi story apartment blocks. The downside of steel is that it’s much harder to work with as it’s much heavier and usually requires more people, or even a crane to lift it in place. This includes both System scaffold and frame and brace scaffold.
Frame & Brace although the easiest to install, is restricted due to the size of the frames. This can also be a factor if access to the installation area is limited or restricted. These frames can not be broken down, but the System Ring Lock scaffold is comprised of individual components, meaning it’s more customizable and depending on the component size, potentially lighter and easier to mobilize.
Aluminum Tube & Clamp scaffolds are the most versatile scaffold option. It is lightweight, making it the easiest to mobilize and can be fitted to suit almost every situation with no fixed measurements. But it does not have the load capacity of the other two, so it cannot be loaded up with materials. It also cannot be built to the same height as the others.
Are you Building Up or Down?
When you think of scaffolding you usually think of building up to reach a higher point for repairs or building, but what if the job requires work under a bridge or reach the side of a cargo ship for repairs or maintenance? Scaffold towers can allow you to reach heights and you can build up with each of the three types Northstar offers, but you’ll need a suspension scaffold structure to allow you to build downwards.
The main purpose of suspension scaffold is to reach areas when there is no solid structure underneath to build off, or where the structure you are trying to reach is higher than practical for a standard scaffold tower. Determining whether your project requires a build up or a build down is an important part in determining which scaffold type is best for the job.
Suspension scaffold jobs require Tube and Clamp, or System Ring lock or combination of the two.
The Infrastructure Health & Safety Association (IHSA) offers great resources for proper installation guidance, but keep in mind that guides may differ depending on your provincial regulations!
OTHER THINGS TO CONSIDER
Building Wide:
If you require a span of more than 10 feet, then System Ring Lock or Tube & Clamp are your best options.
Building out:
If your scaffold access project requires a cantilever of more than 4 feet (using side brackets), then our experts highly recommend against Frame and Brace. When using frame and brace scaffold you do not have individual components to properly brace or support the cantilevered platform back to the main scaffold tower, but the System Ring Lock and Tube & Clamp options do. And, of course, it is always important to ensure proper stabilization when using cantilever components such as side brackets.
Mobile or Stationary?
The right scaffold will meet your project needs, knowing if a mobile or stationary structure is best will be kep in your decision making. Most scaffold is a solid structure built from the ground up and stabilized with outriggers that maintain a 3:1 ratio (height vs smallest base measurement) or anchored to a wall or other structural component to prevent any swaying or tipping. However, some jobs such as painting a high ceiling in a large open room or building, you may want to be able to move your scaffold like you would a ladder, meaning you’d want your scaffold structure to be mobile. This would allow you to can move along at your own pace and work progresses, rather than having someone come back and strip and rebuild every time you need to move. Northstar offers lockable casters for all three types of scaffold.
Mobile scaffold towers are also great for small jobs that require you to move along from one point to the next. You do, however, need an even stable ground surface to be able to move safely and easily. You must also ensure that you are locking the casters every time the scaffold is moved. Safe practices and codes are especially important when it comes to mobile scaffolds such as having the proper size base or outriggers as stabilization is not as robust on casters as it is normal baseplates.
Budget & Costs
Budget is often a decision-making factor and the installation time is often the biggest differentiator. While there can a big difference in price between your common scaffold structures and the more complex elaborate structures, you’ll want to make sure you have the best solution and the right scaffold for your project type.
Still unsure of which scaffold is right for your job? Contact our experts today!
