Scaffold Inspection for the Competent Person

Duration: 2-3 hours

Note: This program does not qualify for competent person level training but rather complements the training as the inspection module.

Pre-Requisite: Scaffold Competent Person Training

Course Description:

Before allowing their employees on-site, employers must conduct a detailed assessment of the site’s conditions. This is to identify, as accurately as possible, any potential hazards to employees and to determine the necessary safety measures needed to carry out the work safely. Additionally, a competent person must inspect the scaffolding before each work shift begins.

According to CAL OSHA, a competent person is someone who can spot both existing and foreseeable risks in the work environment or conditions that are unsafe, hazardous, or pose a danger to employees, and who also has the authority to implement immediate corrective actions to address these hazards.

This course aims to equip participants with essential knowledge and skills in safely inspecting scaffolding, ensuring the safe and effective inspection of scaffolds.

Who is this course for?

If you are involved in construction, maintenance, or any profession that involves elevated work platforms and deemed the competent person, this course is an ideal fit to supplement your training. By investing in safety training, you significantly reduce the risk of accidents, ensuring the protection and well-being of workers. Due to its widespread use, scaffolding poses potential risks, especially when users lack proper training. This course complements Competent Persons trained to inspect scaffolding.  Employees who perform work while on a scaffold must be trained to recognize the hazards associated with the type of scaffold being used and to understand the inspection procedures to control or minimize those hazards.

Course Content:

The curriculum offers an in-depth exploration of scaffolding inspection techniques specific to the scaffold provided at job site including scaffold components, safe operational practices, scaffolding inspection techniques, common hazards, scaffold stability, and more.

Key Topics:

• Understanding of scaffold use and safety
• Scaffold inspections, components, hazards, types, and safety rules
• Scaffold inspection real-life examples
• Inspection checklists, reports, course wrap-up, and final assessment

Upon course conclusion, participants will be equipped to:

• Recognize basic scaffold components
• Articulate fundamental scaffold use rules
• Differentiate between the roles of Qualified and Competent Persons
• Identify potential hazards associated with scaffold use
• Conduct scaffold inspections (on equipment trained to)
• Understand the constraints of various scaffold types
• Recognize scaffold types that are prohibited in California
• Describe components of the scaffold