Step-stools

Falls are common In homes. They can cause Injuries. They occur in bathrooms. They occur in the kitchen. They occur on stairs. They can be prevented by cleaning up spills quickly and using a step stool when you need to reaoh something in a high place. They can also be prevented by using only non-slip rugs and removing items on stairways that could oause you to trip. 

A double-cleated ladder, or two or more ladders, must be provided when ladders are the only way to enter or exit a work area having twenty-five or more employees, or when a ladder serves simultaneous two-way traffic. Ladder rungs, cleats, and steps must be parallel, level, and uniformly spaced when the ladder is in position for use. Rungs, cleats, and steps of portable and fixed ladders (except as provided below) must not be spaced less than 10 inches apart, or more than 14 inches apart, along the ladder s side-rails. Rungs, cleats, and steps of step stools must not be less than 8 inches apart, nor more than 12 inches apart, between center lines of the rungs, cleats, and steps. 

Step stool (ladder type) means a self-supporting, foldable, portable ladder, nonad-justable in length, 32 inches or less in overall size, with flat steps and without a pail shelf, designed to be climbed on the ladder top cap as well as all steps. The side rails may continue above the top cap. 

II) Rungs, cleats, and steps of step stools shall be not less than 8 inches (20 cm) apart, nor more than 12 inches (31 cm) apart, as measured between center lines of the rungs, cleats, and steps. 

Storage of ladders is also an injury prevention issue. Ladders should be hung or chained to prevent turnover. Some organizations lock the ladders and provide a common key to personnel who have been trained to properly use the tool. This ensures that only qualified personnel have access to a ladder. Teachers should have access to ladders and step stools. They must be able to decorate classrooms, store, and retrieve items safely. Not providing them the tools and training can result in injury. They cannot and will not wait on maintenance personnel or custodians to do the job for them. 

Faculty using ladders or step stools to access items at a height rather than climbing on desks and chairs... 

Since the step stool was the highest-volume product in the plant, the organization had become quite proficient in producing it. But the overhead rate was full of costs for inefficiencies from making lower-volume products. In effect, the efficient step stool production subsidized the inefficient products. Actual variable costs for the step stool were 5. AAftth fully absorbed costs, the client would seem to lose 2 on every unit. In direct costing, he would put 3 in his pocket. He refused Sears offer. 

Falls and slips are common industrial accidents, and also occur in the laboratory. Falls can be caused by tripping, loss of traction on a slippery spot, or climbing on improper supports, such as chairs, to reach objects overhead. Climbing on furniture, such as chairs and tables, instead of step-stools or approved ladders to reach upper shelves or high areas in the laboratory should be strongly discour-... 

Level. Keeping your projects aligned during construction can make the difference between a wobbly step-stool and one you can actually use. As in your domestic repair tool kit (see page 216), choose between a bubble and a laser level. 

There are things that are unlikely, like winning the lottery, and there are things that are impossible, like cutting two identical, irregularly shaped pieces of wood without a template. A template and the skills to use it ensure that you can mass-produce complicated cuts—in this case, two identical legs for a Shaker-style step stool. 

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