In the News”
By Willis Smith
Technical Manager
Metrovision Inc.
The cost of a ladder replacement and adherence to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration safety standards are generally areas that technical management has difficulty keeping track of. After concentrating on plant electronics, vehicles and personnel, rarely do ladders get much attention unless they are broken. Furthermore, most cable systems are not equipped or do not have the expertise to repair and maintain a fleet of ladders within stringent OSHA requirements.
Short rung cost
Typically, the primary method of ladder repair has been to purchase a new ladder. The average cost of a new ladder will range between $250 and $350 - by no means an inexpensive repair. Now let's multiply a median price of $300 by a fleet of 50 trucks with two ladders per truck (one small and one large).
Two ladders/truck = $600
50 trucks in fleet = x50
Total fleet cost = 600 x 50 = $ 30,000
Long rung cost
When you also consider the life span of a fiberglass ladder that has not been maintained will be one to three years (depending on the installer/tech use), ladder replacement costs become even more significant over a 10-year period. If we use a life span of two years as an average, an entire fleet of ladders will be replaced five times during a 10-year period:
Fleet ladder cost = $30,000
Replacement interval = x 5
Cost over 10 years = 30,000 x 5 = $150,000
Proactive, professional approach
Enlisting the services of a professional ladder refurbishment company can go a long way in reducing the cost associated with ladder replacement as well as compliance with OSHA standards. A professional approach offers several advantages to system operations:
- Routine (semiannual) inspection of ladder operation and OSHA compliance
- There is normally no charge for inspections
- Repair cost guidelines are set when replacement vs. repair is more cost-effective
- Unsafe ladders are taken out of service
- Inspection and repair are scheduled around daily working hours
- Results are documented on the ladders and submitted to management in report form.
The bottom rung
Ladder inspection and repair at Metrovision of Prince George's County, Md., by Batavia® Services Inc. made a significant impact on getting a handle on fleet ladder problems and safety. On-site work was scheduled from 3 p.m. to 12 a.m. for three days during one week. Ladders were taken off trucks and brought to a warehouse for inspection and repair. After inspection, ladders that could not be repaired and ladders that were not cost-effective to repair were put out of service. A total of 62 ladders were inspected and repaired at a cost of $2,007. Six ladders had to be replaced. The life expectancy of a properly utilized and maintained fiberglass ladder can be 10 years or more. If we look at the cost of professionally servicing 62 ladders over a 10-year period vs. the cost of simply replacing them, the cost saving is impressive.
62 ladders divided into $2,007 = $32.37
Semiannual inspection/repair = x 2
Yearly cost per ladder = 32.37 x 2 = $64.74
Yearly cost for 62 ladders = $4,015.36
10-year fleet cost = $4,015.36 x 10 = $40,153.60
Since 62 ladders at $300 each would cost about $18,600 to replace, and since we decided before they would have to be replaced five times in a 10-year period, the cost over 10 years would be $93,000. Compare $40,153.60 for ladder repair to $93,000 for replacement, and the cost-effective solution is obvious.
Summary
Our ladder refurbishment efforts were so successful we decided to have our ladder racks inspected and repaired as well. Since much of the damage a ladder receives can be directly attributed to a ladder rack that is in disrepair, we felt it was important to service both. By using a professional ladder service, a system operator or MSO can benefit on a short-, and long-term basis. It is a win/win situation where the cost associated with ladder replacement can be reduced dramatically and OSHA safety guidelines can be enforced and monitored for compliance.
The author would like to thank Ray Miller, a regional engineer with Metrovision, for his assistance in the preparation of this article.
This article originally published in a customers newsletter, Communications Technology/BACK TO BASICS.