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Aerial Boom Lift and Scissor Lift Operation

Safe operation of boom-type aerial lifts and scissor lifts used in the warehouse for rack repair, lighting and sprinkler work, high-bay cleaning, and signage, covering operator training and authorization, the daily test of the lift controls before use, ground and floor conditions and wheel chocks on inclines, guardrails and gates on the platform, personal fall arrest or travel restraint attached to the boom or basket on boom lifts, standing on the platform floor only with no ladders or planks, manufacturer load limits, the rule against traveling with the boom elevated, upper and lower controls and when ground controls may be used, overhead line and overhead obstruction clearance, the traffic exclusion zone kept below the platform, and defect reporting with out-of-service tagging.

Audience
Authorized aerial lift and scissor lift operators, maintenance technicians and facilities staff who work at height, the ground person assigned to a machine in use, area supervisors who assign elevated work, contractors who bring or use a lift on the property, and the safety program owner who maintains the authorization, training, and inspection records
Review cycle
annual
Last reviewed
2026-08-29
Revision
1

What is in the procedure

8 sections. Regulatory language is fixed and passes through verbatim. Sections marked customized get rewritten around your facility, your equipment, and your job titles.

  1. 01

    Purpose

    Fixed

    This procedure governs the safe operation of the two families of elevating work platforms used in this warehouse: boom-type aerial lifts and scissor lifts.

  2. 02

    Scope

    Customized

    This procedure applies to every boom-type aerial lift and every scissor lift operated on this property, whether owned, rented, leased, or brought in by a contractor, and to every task performed from one, including...

  3. 03

    Responsibilities

    Customized

    Authorized operators run only the machines they are trained and authorized on, test the lift controls before use each day, complete the walkaround required by the manufacturer's manual, set up the machine on sound...

  4. 04

    Procedure: Authorization, Training, and the Daily Pre-Use Check

    Fixed

    1. Only trained persons operate an aerial lift, and at this facility only operators on the current authorization list operate a boom lift or a scissor lift.

  5. 05

    Procedure: Setting Up the Machine and Protecting the Area Below

    Customized

    1. Check the surface the machine will stand and travel on before you position it.

  6. 06

    Procedure: Working from the Platform

    Fixed

    1. Enter and leave the platform only through the gate, at ground level, with the platform lowered, and close the gate or chain behind you.

  7. 07

    Defect Handling, Out-of-Service Tagging, and Incident Reporting

    Customized

    Any operator who finds a defect reports it the same shift and does not run the machine: a control that sticks, drifts, or does not respond, a failed emergency stop or emergency lowering function, a silent or constant...

  8. 08

    References

    Fixed

    29 CFR 1910.67 Vehicle-mounted elevating and rotating work platforms, the standard covering boom-type aerial devices, including 29 CFR 1910.67(b)(4), which directs employers to the electrical safe work practices...

Regulatory references

Aerial Boom Lift and Scissor Lift Operation: 29 CFR 1910.67(c)(2)(ii)

Every SOP generated from this template cites the paragraphs below, with a plain-language summary of what each one requires. Citations are informational and are not legal advice.

StandardTitleWhat it requires
29 CFR 1910.67(c)(2)(ii)Extensible and articulating boom platforms: only trained persons may operateOnly trained persons shall operate an aerial lift. At this facility that duty is met by a documented authorization list naming the operators trained on each specific boom lift model on the property, and no one operates a machine that is not on their authorization.
29 CFR 1910.67(c)(2)(i)Extensible and articulating boom platforms: daily test of lift controlsLift controls shall be tested each day prior to use to determine that such controls are in safe working condition. This paragraph is specific to the lift controls; the broader walkaround of tires, hoses, pins, guardrails, and decals that this procedure also requires comes from the manufacturer's manual and the ANSI A92 consensus standards, not from this paragraph.
29 CFR 1910.67(c)(2)(vii)Extensible and articulating boom platforms: brakes, outriggers, and wheel chocksThe brakes shall be set and outriggers, when used, shall be positioned on pads or a solid surface. Wheel chocks shall be installed before using an aerial lift on an incline.
29 CFR 1910.67(c)(2)(iv)Extensible and articulating boom platforms: standing position in the basketEmployees shall always stand firmly on the floor of the basket, and shall not sit or climb on the edge of the basket or use planks, ladders, or other devices for a work position.
29 CFR 1910.67(c)(2)(v)Extensible and articulating boom platforms: personal fall arrest or travel restraintA personal fall arrest or travel restraint system that meets the requirements in subpart I of this part shall be worn and attached to the boom or basket when working from an aerial lift. The attachment point is the machine itself: this facility issues a full body harness with a lanyard or self-retracting lifeline to every employee assigned to a boom lift and requires it clipped to the manufacturer's anchor on the boom or basket for the whole time the employee is on the platform.
29 CFR 1910.67(c)(2)(viii)Extensible and articulating boom platforms: moving the truck with the boom elevatedAn aerial lift truck may not be moved when the boom is elevated in a working position with men in the basket, except for equipment which is specifically designed for that type of operation in accordance with the design and field modification provisions of this section. Where a machine on this property is designed for elevated travel, the manufacturer's manual states it, and the machine is moved elevated only within the surface, grade, and speed limits that manual sets.
29 CFR 1910.28(a)(2)Duty to have fall protection: situations the section does not apply toThe general industry fall protection section does not apply to portable ladders; to inspecting, investigating, or assessing workplace conditions or work to be performed before work starts or after all work is completed, unless compliant fall protection has been installed and is available for those inspections; to the exposed perimeters of entertainment stages and rail-station platforms; to powered platforms; to aerial lifts covered by 29 CFR 1910.67(c)(2)(v); to telecommunications work; or to electric power generation, transmission, and distribution work. The exclusion for aerial lifts is the reason boom lift fall protection is governed by the aerial lift standard while scissor lift work stays inside this section.
29 CFR 1910.28(b)(12)Duty to have fall protection: scaffolds and rope descent systemsThe employer must ensure that each employee on a scaffold is protected from falling in accordance with 29 CFR part 1926, subpart L, and that each employee using a rope descent system 4 feet (1.2 m) or more above a lower level is protected from falling by a personal fall arrest system. This paragraph routes the scaffold fall protection duty to the construction scaffold standard rather than setting the method itself. This facility applies it to scissor lifts, which OSHA treats as mobile scaffolds and not as aerial lifts, and uses no rope descent systems.
29 CFR 1910.30(a)Fall protection training requirements: fall hazardsBefore any employee is exposed to a fall hazard, the employer must provide training for each employee who uses personal fall protection systems or who is required to be trained elsewhere in the subpart, and each employee must be trained by a qualified person. The training must cover the nature of the fall hazards in the work area and how to recognize them, the procedures to be followed to minimize those hazards, the correct procedures for installing, inspecting, operating, maintaining, and disassembling the personal fall protection systems the employee uses, and the correct use of those systems and equipment, including proper hook-up, anchoring, and tie-off techniques and methods of equipment inspection and storage as specified by the manufacturer. As applied here, every employee issued a harness and lanyard for boom lift work receives that training content before their first lift assignment.

Compliance checklist

What an inspector looks for

  • Only trained persons operate an aerial lift, and a current authorization list with dated training records names the operators cleared on each boom lift on the property

    29 CFR 1910.67(c)(2)(ii)

  • The lift controls on each boom lift are tested each day prior to use to determine that they are in safe working condition, and the test is recorded

    29 CFR 1910.67(c)(2)(i)

  • Before an aerial lift is used the brakes are set, outriggers where used are positioned on pads or a solid surface, and wheel chocks are installed before the lift is used on an incline

    29 CFR 1910.67(c)(2)(vii)

  • Floors and travel surfaces where lifts are set up and driven are kept clean and orderly, dry to the extent feasible, and free of hazards such as spills, leaks, ice, protruding objects, and debris

    29 CFR 1910.22(a)

  • Employees working from a boom lift stand firmly on the floor of the basket and do not sit or climb on the edge of the basket or use planks, ladders, or other devices for a work position

    29 CFR 1910.67(c)(2)(iv)

  • Every employee working from a boom lift wears a personal fall arrest or travel restraint system meeting subpart I and keeps it attached to the boom or basket

    29 CFR 1910.67(c)(2)(v)

  • The boom and basket load limits specified by the manufacturer are not exceeded, counting occupants, tools, and material together

    29 CFR 1910.67(c)(2)(vi)

  • No aerial lift truck is moved while the boom is elevated in a working position with employees in the basket, except equipment specifically designed for that operation

    29 CFR 1910.67(c)(2)(viii)

  • Boom lifts have both platform and lower controls, both are plainly marked, the lower controls override the upper controls, and the lower controls are not operated without permission from the employee in the lift except in an emergency

    29 CFR 1910.67(c)(2)(ix)

  • Each employee on a scissor lift, which this facility treats as a mobile scaffold rather than an aerial lift, is protected from falling in accordance with 29 CFR part 1926 subpart L, a duty met here by the machine's complete guardrail system with the gate or chain closed as the manufacturer's manual requires

    29 CFR 1910.28(b)(12)

  • Before the platform is elevated the route and the overhead are surveyed for sprinkler piping, joists, light fixtures, conduit, ductwork, door tracks, and overhead electric lines, and the floor area below and around the platform is barricaded and kept clear of pedestrian and forklift traffic while the lift is in use

  • Defects, alarm faults, damaged fall protection, and overhead damage such as a struck sprinkler head are reported the same shift, the machine is tagged out of service at the controls until repaired, and only the named authority returns it to service

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This page is informational and is not legal advice. Have a qualified safety professional review any procedure before it goes into service at your facility.