Masonry Magazine January 1962 Page. 41
SCAFFOLDING TECHNIQUES
The importance of continuously adjustable scaffolding, the element of the "SCR masonry process," was imposed upon us by Mr. A. B. Segur, motion-time study ist, who made the original recommendations from the "process" evolved. He stressed that the mason always have his materials and wall at a convenient height to eliminate bending and reaching and the resulting fatigue which greatly reduces the mason's productive capacity. An example of why bending produces fatigue is simply illustrated: every time you bend over from an erect position and touch the tips of your shoes and then return to an erect position you are lifting one-half of your weight by your back muscles. If you weigh 200 lbs., you are lifting 100 lbs. each time you go through that motion. If, during an 8-hr. working day (480 minutes), you do this an average of once every two minutes, you will have lifted a total of 24,000 lbs. or 12 tons by the end of the day—without even considering the weight of any brick, tile or mortar you may have lifted in each movement. No wonder bricklayers call their trade a "backbreaking" one and no wonder fatigue is such an important factor in limiting the number of brick or tile a mason can lay in an day.
In May 1951 the Foundation began work on the development of a continuously adjustable scaffold as recommended by Segur. However, during our initial development work, one contractor in South Dakota, named Morgen, developed an elevating tower-type scaffold. Since the Morgen scaffold was then on the market and available for our use, no further development work was carried on by the Foundation. However, several tubular scaffolding companies were encouraged to develop adjustable mason scaffolding that would meet the needs of the "process" development.
TYPES OF ADJUSTABLE SCAFFOLDS
There are three types of continuously adjustable scaffolds in use today. They are: the suspended scaffold or swing stage, the elevating tower-type scaffold and the tubular scaffold with continuously adjustable brackets.
Swing Stage:
The first continuously adjustable scaffold and the one used most often on skeleton framed buildings of over three or four stories in height is the suspended scaffold or swing stage. Five or eight ft. wide platforms are suspended by cables from I beams or outriggers anchored securely at the roof level. These platforms are raised and lowered by hand winches. A five ft. wide platform or stage is used where buildings have low story heights and materials are delivered to the scaffold from the floors. Eight ft. wide platforms are generally used when materials are hoisted from the outside and distributed directly from the hoist to the scaffold. Packages, pallets and mortar buggies can be transported along a scaffold of this width. Another advantage of this width is that the inboard winches can be set back about 2 ft. from the wall so that the mason can have an unobstructed working area.
The drawback of the swing stage in its present form is the lack of a raised material shelf. One solution is to erect a continuous raised platform on the present type of scaffold. However, stocking that platform requires re-handling of all materials from the main platform to the materials shelf.
The logical answer is to suspend a separate mason's platform about 20 to 24 in. below the regular stage. This can be done by cantilevering a 24-in. wide mason's shelf about 2 ft. below and to the inside of the regular swing stage. This provides the mason with a clear working space, keeps his materials at proper height, and leaves the balance of the stage free for materials stocking and transportation. This type of stage is not generally available commercially but at least one company has been experimenting in this direction.