GB2112440A

GB2112440A - Scaffolding

Info

Publication number: GB2112440A
Application number: GB08230186A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Antonio Campos Fernandez
Original assignee: Acrow Ltd UK
Current assignee: Acrow Ltd UK
Priority date: 1981-10-29
Filing date: 1982-10-22
Publication date: 1983-07-20

Abstract

A method of erecting a support bracket (24) and a scaffold structure (10) adjacent an upright member (12) such as a building structure, comprises rigidly attaching the support bracket to the upright member, placing a scaffold structure onto the bracket for support, and fixedly but releasably securing the scaffold structure relative to the upright member by securing means (64) on the bracket. This means that whilst the scaffold structure is being secured to the upright member and when it is removed from the bracket the scaffold is safely supported by the bracket. This prevents the dangerous and unsatisfactory situation of the scaffold structure being supported during attachment and removal from the upright member by a loose anchor bolt. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Improvements in and relating to scaffolding This invention relates to suspended scaffolding and particularly to scaffolding supported by outside walls of upright building structure.

Known suspended scaffolding members are supported on outside walls by means of an anchor embedded in the wall'and a bolt or the like passing into the anchor, securely fastening the structure to the wall. A disadvantage of this arrangement is that when the structure is to be attached to or removed from any one position on the wall, the anchor bolt has to be loosened and for a time during the attachment or removal, the structure is supported only by a loose bolt. This is dangerous and unsatisfactory.

It is an object of this invention to overcome this disadvantage.

According to the invention a method of erecting a support bracket(s) and a scaffold structure adjacent an upright member such as a building structure, comprises rigidly attaching the support bracket(s) to the upright member, placing a scaffold structure onto the bracket(s) for support, and fixedly but releasably securing the scaffold structure relative to the upright member with securing means on the bracket. This means that the scaffold structure is safely supported by the bracket(s) whilst the structure is being secured to the upright member. Furthermore when the scaffold structure is to be removed, whilst the securing means on the bracket is being released the scaffold is safely supported by the bracket(s).

The scaffold structure may then be removed from the bracket(s) as a unit. The bracket(s) are subsequently removed from the upright member.

An angle bracket in accordance with the invention for use in the above method of supporting a scaffold structure adjacent an upright member comprises a "vertical" plate which in use is rigidly secured to an upright member, a "horizontal" plate extending at right angles to the "vertical" plate and which in use forms a horizontal support ledge for the scaffold structure, and an "upper" plate carrying securing means which in use acts to rigidly secure the scaffolding structure relative to the upright member.

The scaffold structure to be supported preferably comprises a horizontal platform which may itself carry a further suspended scaffolding and formwork members.

The platform carried by any one bracket or row of brackets may be used by a worker to attach a further bracket or row of brackets at a location spaced above the bracket(s) carrying the platform.

Removal of the bracket or row of brackets from a location beneath the platform may be carried out from the suspended scaffolding.

Preferably, the scaffold structure is positioned on and removed from the support bracket(s) by a crane.

The invention will now be further described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a side elevation of a scaffolding structure and a support bracket in accordance with the invention; Figure 2 is a side view of a detailed portion of the scaffolding structure of Figure 1; Figure 3 is an end view of the portion of Figure 2; Figure 4 is a side view of a support bracket in accordance with the invention; Figure 5 is an end view of the bracket of Figure 4; Figure 6 is a perspective view of the detailed portion of Figure 2 and bracket of Figure 4; Figure 7 shows a further scaffolding structure; and Figure 8 shows a side elevation of a scaffolding structure similar to that shown in Figure 1.

Referring to Figure 1 a scaffolding structure 10 is shown mounted to the outside wall 12 of a building structure 1 4. The scaffolding structure 10 comprises four main components, a main platform 16, upper smaller access platforms 18, a lower suspended platform 20 and wall formwork 22.

The main platform 16 is carried by the wall 12 through a support bracket 24, and the main platform 1 6 itself supports the lower platform 20 suspended beneath and the outer part of the wall formwork 22 to which the upper platform 1 8 is secured. The inner part of the wall formwork 22 is supported by a floor 26 of the building structure 14.

The wall formwork 22 defines a space 28 into which concrete is poured so forming the wall of the next storey of the building structure. The space 28 is transversed by a through tie 30 and a panel separator 32 so as to hold together formwork 22 and produce a properly shaped wall. To the outside of the outer part of the formwork an upper access platform 1 8 is secured to provide a platform from which workmen can pour the concrete into the space 28.

The main platform includes a scaffold plank 34 and a handrail 36, supported by a platform bracket 38. The platform bracket 38 is secured to the 'outside wall 12 by the support bracket 24.

Below and supported by the main platform 1 6 is a suspended platform 20.

The platform bracket 38 (see Figures 2 and 3) comprises a horizontal member 40 on which the scaffold planks 34 are supported, a vertical member 42 extending down from one end of the horizontal member 40, and a diagonal member 44 extending between the other "free" ends of the members 42 and 40. Adjacent the intersection of the members 42 and 40 a square cross-section shaped hollow support member 46 is welded both to members 42 and 40. This support member 46 further includes a screw and nut 48 extending through one of its sides and is further supported by an angle member 50 attached to the vertical member 42.The support member 46 is positioned outside the triangle formed by the members 40, 42 and 44 so that in use it is adjacent the wall 12, and the horizontal member 40 extends a distance beyond the intersection point of the members 40 and 42 corresponding approximately to the width of the support member 46. A bearing plate 52 extends out from the bottom end of the upright 42 by a distance equal to the width of the support member 46.

A vertical tube 54 is positioned adjacent the "free" end of the horizontal member 40 and is drilled with holes 55 through which bolts can support a handrail and/or a suspended platform.

Couplers 56 and 57 are welded to the underside of the outer end 59 and inner end 61 of the horizontal member 40 to provide means through which tubular ledgers 58 (see Figure 7) extending from adjacent platform brackets 38 can be supported.

The support bracket 24 (see Figures 4 and 5) is rigidly attached to an anchor 60 embedded in the wall 12 by means of a bolt 70. The support bracket 24 itself comprises a vertical member 62 and a horizontal ledge 66 carrying securing means 64.

The attachment of the platform bracket 38 to the support bracket 24 is shown in Figure 6. The platform bracket 38 is shown with a transversely extending bar 68 carried by the support member 46 of the platform bracket 38. The bar 68 which extends adjacent the wall 12 is secured in this support member 46 by a screw and nut 48.

The erection of the support bracket 24 and scaffold structure 10 to the wall 12 comprises rigidly attaching the support bracket 24 to the wall 12 by means of the bolt 70, placing the bar 68 of the scaffold structure on the ledge member 66 of the support bracket for support, and fixedly securing the bar 68 to the support bracket 24 by means of a bolt 72 of the securing means 64. The bar 68 need not necessarily be tightly secured between the securing means 64 and wall 12as the bar 68 is supported in the support member 46 which is itself spaced from the wall 1 2 by the inner end 61 of the horizontal member 40 (see Figure 2). The main factor is that the bar 68 be secured tightly to the support bracket 24 which is itself secured to the wall by bolt 70.

The dismantling of the support bracket 24 and scaffold structure 10 from the wall 12 comprises releasing the bar 68 from being secured by the securing means 64, removing the bar 68 from the ledge member 66 and finaliy detaching the support bracket 24 from the wail. The advantage of this arrangement is that the scaffold structure 10 can be released and secured to the wall while being supported on the support bracket 24 which is itself rigidly secured to the wall.

In known prior art methods, a scaffold structure was simply supported and secured to a wall, with no support bracket, by a bolt passing through to an anchor in the wall. To release the scaffold structure from the wall, the bolt had to be loosened, and accordingly the scaffold structure was supported only by a loose bolt. This was extremely dangerous as the bolt could have fallen out completely and thus provide no direct support for the scaffold structure.

A unit 73 of five platform brackets 38 (see Figure 7) is preferably lifted from the ground to the side of building structure by a crane and it will be noted that the crane support point 74 is slightly off centre of the unit 73, so that the unit 73 will be at a slight angle to the horizontal. This is to help the positioning of the unit into five horizontally level support brackets 24 on a wall, as it allows one end of the unit to be positioned first in one support bracket and then controls the positioning of the rest of the unit into the other support brackets.

Once the platforms of a unit 73 have been used to construct the next storey of the building, the unit will then be lifted so as to be supported on that next storey. To achieve this, anchors 76 have to be embedded in the wall of that upper storey and this is preferably done during the actual construction of the wall. In Figure 1, an anchor 76 is shown attached to the formwork 22 so that when concrete is poured into the space 28 to form the next wall, the anchor 76 will be embedded in that wall. Accordingly, the wall is constructed with a number of vertically spaced rows of anchors, and it is on the support brackets attached to these anchors that a unit will be supported at one storey and then after lifting to the next storey.

It will be noted that after a unit has been lifted out of support brackets 24 secured to anchors 78 (see Figure 1) and subsequently supported on support brackets 24 secured to anchors 60 on an upper storey, the support brackets 24 may be removed from the anchors 78 by a workman standing on the suspended platform 20.

Furthermore before a unit can be supported by anchors 76, support bracket 24 will have to be inserted and secured to the anchors 76 (see Figure 8) by workman standing on the main platform 1 6.

Claims

1. A method of erecting a support bracket(s) and a scaffold structure adjacent an upright member such as a building structure, comprising rigidly attaching the support bracket(s) to the upright member, placing a scaffold structure onto the bracket(s) for support, and fixedly but releasably securing the scaffold structure relative to the upright member with securing means on the bracket.

2. A method as claimed in Claim 1 wherein the support bracket(s) and scaffold structure are dismantled by releasing the securing means on the bracket whilst the scaffold is supported by the bracket, removing the scaffold structure from the bracket(s) and finally removing the bracket(s) from the upright members.

3. A method as claimed in either Claim 1 or 2 wherein the scaffold structure to be supported comprises a horizontal platform which itself supports further suspended scaffolding and/or formwork members.

4. A method as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the scaffold structure carried by any one bracket or row of brackets is used by a worker to attach a further bracket or row of brackets at a location spaced above the bracket(s) carrying the scaffold structure.

5. A method as claimed in any preceding claim wherein removal of a bracket or row of brackets from a location beneath the scaffold structure is carried out from a suspended scaffolding.

6. A method as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the scaffold structure is positioned on and removed from the support bracket(s) by a crane.

7. A method of erecting a support bracket(s) and a scaffold structure substantially as herein described with reference to the drawings.

8. An angle bracket for use in a method as claimed in any preceding claim comprising a "vertical" plate which in use is rigidly secured to an upright member, a "horizontal" plate extending at right angles to the "vertical" plate and which in use forms a horizontal support ledge for the scaffold structure, and an "upper" plate carrying securing means which in use acts to rigidly secure the scaffolding structure relative to the upright member.

9. An angle bracket substantially as herein described with reference to the drawings.