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Category: Safety Alerts

Published: 08 September 2012

Two roofing technicians were going on to a flat roof to perform an inspection and repair. The first technician set up a 30 foot extension ladder to access the roof. The ladder was a Type IA Fiberglass ladder rated for a load capacity of 300 pounds. The technician weighed approximately 160 pounds. The ladder had been inspected and was less than 2 months old. The ladder had not been damaged or subjected to any harsh conditions.As the technician was climbing the ladder he felt the ladder start to give from underneath him. He was able to reach and hold on to the roof edge as the ladder collapsed. The second technician was able to get another ladder from their service truck, set the ladder up and get the first technician down safely without incident.

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#12 Terry 2013-12-05 21:22

Is fibreglass a suitable material for ladders. A metal or wooden ladder will give warning signs as it deteriorates but fibreglass can fail without warning. The glass reinforcement fibres are buried in the resin. Glass has poor ductility and can easily snap without warning. If tested by bending internal fibres can hold and deflect normally but break on next usage. Best revert to metal ladders if you want to be safe> it will bend a bit long before breaking.

#11 paulbkamp 2013-08-31 14:58

OSHA requires an inspection of all ladders twice a year buy a qualified Ladder Inspector. The companies are usually very good and they will find the defects of your ladders before you will. They will also certify them with an Inspection dated stickers. Don't create an unsafe environment for your employees buy thinking you can do it by yourself. Hire a company that knows what to look for.

#10 Gareth 2012-12-11 14:53

The above story reached our Industrial Site today but what amazed me is that the ladder was sited on soft lumpy looking ground. There was nothing solid underneath like a sole board, so of course it's going to dig into the ground, when someone climbs it. The ladders centre of gravity has been altered (the ladder would dig into the ground on one side) - nothing mentioned in the story about this. Non fibreglass ladder manufacturers will be delighted about this story because this type of accident/incident leads to decisions being made to ban fibreglass as a knee jerk reaction. I think it was a case of misuse more than anything else. It was almost, sure it had some defects by the sounds of things but how solid was the ground underfoot? I worked for an access company and we didn't do fibreglass towers but fibreglass does have its benefits.

#9 Alan 2012-10-30 21:00

Quote:

•The ladders are eighteen months old, and nobody has made an inspection on them up until that point which indicates a company that does not take care of its equipment.

How do you know they were 18 months old? I did not see that anywhere in the article. In fact, it states the ladder in question was only 2 months old.

Quote:

•The ladders were being used to access a roof and look pretty poor length to do so with, being on maximum extension, and therefore subject to strains over and above the demands of our ladders.

They look very much a good length to me. For one, if you add the end of the ladder which had been destroyed back in the length, you can see it would clearly extend well over the rooftop. Also, it is not at "maximum extension" the picture clearly shows at least 11 rungs of overlap.

#8 dEAN 2012-10-24 15:09

If you can run a finger up and down the sidewall without getting fiberglass splinters it may be worthwhile to do so. Otherwise the ladder may just be junk

#7 ewk don 2012-10-17 01:23

this is crappy manufacturing, the govt, and store keepers need to prevent this stuff from reaching our shelves. it kills people.
Even if there were cracks it shouldnt collapse like this, even if it has been manhandled and weathered, it should still hold up. Its a ladder for goodness sakes

-1 #6 Roger Read 2012-10-15 09:38

•The claim that it had never been subject to harsh conditions (exposed at height in the weather on a roof) is a slightly unbelievable statement

•Roofing materials are always incredibly heavy, and although the man weighed 160lbs the stock carried on that ladder in 18 months of daily use is a likely potential for cracks appearing.

•The ladders are eighteen months old, and nobody has made an inspection on them up until that point which indicates a company that does not take care of its equipment.

•The ladders may have been inexpensive, badly made, ladders. They may have been badly treated.

•The ladders were being used to access a roof and look pretty poor length to do so with, being on maximum extension, and therefore subject to strains over and above the demands of our ladders.

#5 Pat McCon 2012-09-25 13:13

Who is the original source of this document? I'd like to share it, but can't unless I can credit the original source. Freaky about copyright infringement.

#4 Bryan 2012-09-19 23:23

Brand is not mentioned and I received no response from anyone as to the brand or model. As it implies in the posting, it may be a defect in how they are manufactured, no one really knows at this point.

#3 E MacMahon 2012-09-19 19:06

What is the manufacturer name and model numbers effected?

#2 Stephen 2012-09-10 22:06

Never heard of this before in over 20 years of working within Roofing industry in the Uk.Never heard of contractors using fibre glass ladders.
If there are risks involved with using these ladders should they not
be banned or has someone got to lose thee life until something is done?

+1 #1 TJ Lyons 2012-09-09 19:22

I have found similar cracks in 6' folding ladders where the spreader bar is fixed to the upright. In one building under construction we took over a dozen out of service (Same brand) for cracking. If anyone is interested in the specifics the can email me at tjlyonsCSPaol.com and I will send the brand and photos where the failure occurs.

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