Introduction
In Vietnam’s manufacturing plants, construction sites, and logistics warehouses, safety management in “high-altitude work” is an inseparable concern. In particular, “portable work platforms (scaffold tables),” which are frequently used for maintenance, equipment inspections, and short-term construction, tend to be neglected in terms of proper safety measures due to their high convenience. According to statistics from the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA) of Vietnam, the top cause of death in occupational accidents is always “falling from heights,” and many of these accidents stem from the use of scaffolding equipment that does not meet safety standards or the non-installation of handrails and toeboards (kick plates: barriers that prevent objects from falling from the floor surface). This article provides a thorough explanation of the legal requirements for portable work platforms, based on Vietnam’s National Technical Regulations (TCVN) and international standards. We propose practical solutions to drastically improve on-site safety and clear safety audits by local authorities.
Challenges and Background Surrounding Portable Work Platforms
Occupational Accident Data for High-Altitude Work in Vietnam
With the rapid development of the manufacturing industry and the influx of foreign-affiliated companies in Vietnam, the importance of Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) has been increasing year by year. However, falls and tumble accidents on-site continue unabated. According to the most recent annual occupational accident report published by MoLISA, 36.5% of fatal accidents across all industries are accounted for by “falls from heights (Ngã từ trên cao).” This ranks as the overwhelming number one worst cause, far ahead of “electric shock (14.2%)” in second place and “entrapment/entanglement by machinery (11.8%)” in third place.
Furthermore, when broken down by industry, construction accounts for 42.1% of the total, and manufacturing (processing, assembly, etc.) accounts for 28.4%. This clearly illustrates how the safety management of portable work platforms used daily at these sites holds the fate of companies. Vietnam’s Law on Occupational Safety and Health (Law No. 84/2015/QH13) strictly mandates that employers provide a safe working environment. If a serious occupational accident occurs, there is a risk of a prison sentence of up to 10 years, fines on the scale of hundreds of millions of VND, and even administrative sanctions such as plant suspension orders.
Severe Risks Due to the Absence of Handrails and Toeboards
Most fall accidents from portable work platforms, as well as falling object accidents from platforms, occur because appropriate “handrails (Lan can)” and “toeboards (Tấm chắn cốp chân / Toeboard)” are not installed.
Imagine a scenario where a worker is using both hands to perform piping maintenance on top of a scaffold table at a height of 1.5m. Without handrails, there is no structural element to instantly support the body if the person loses their balance. Since the human center of gravity is located near the navel, a person can easily slip through and fall from incomplete handrails below the height of 900mm or from gaps where there is no mid-rail (an intermediate horizontal bar between the handrail and the working floor).
Another major, often overlooked risk is the “disaster of flying or falling objects (Vật rơi từ trên cao).” If wrenches, bolts, or materials fall from the top of a work platform, their destructive power is beyond imagination. For example, even a tool weighing a mere 0.5kg, when dropped from a height of 4m, reaches a speed of 31km/h by the time it hits the ground, delivering an impact (approximately 20J of energy) strong enough to penetrate the helmet of a staff member working below. If a “toeboard” with a height of 100mm or more is installed on the floor surface, it physically blocks tools or screws rolling around the feet from being pushed outward, directly linking to saving the lives of workers on the lower level.
Legal Requirements and National Technical Regulations (TCVN, JIS, OSHA)
To reliably clear safety audits (inspections) in Vietnam and establish a safety system based on global standards, understanding the local TCVN (Tiêu chuẩn Việt Nam) regulations is essential. In addition, at foreign-affiliated factories, including Japanese companies, it is common practice to apply stricter internal regulations that comply with Japan’s JIS standards or the US OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) standards.
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Standard height of handrails for fall prevention: 900mm to 1,100mm (Source: TCVN 12660:2019 / Ordinance on Industrial Safety and Health of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan)
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Minimum height of toeboards for preventing falling objects: 100mm or more (Source: OSHA 1910.29 / JIS B 8445)
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Height from the floor surface at which high-altitude work measures are mandated by Vietnamese Labor Law: 2.0m or more (Source: Thông tư 14/2013/TT-BLĐTBXH)
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Minimum lateral load that the handrail body and mid-rail must withstand: 890N (approx. 90kgf) (Source: OSHA 1910.28)
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Maximum allowable loading capacity of portable work platforms (scaffold tables) (for general use): 150kg to 300kg (Source: TCVN 12660 / JIS A 1300)
Provisions for Scaffolding and Work Platforms under Vietnam National Standards (TCVN)
In Vietnam, the safety specifications for portable work platforms and temporary scaffolding are governed by TCVN 12660:2019 (Portable work platforms – Safety requirements and test methods). Under this standard, if the height of the working floor exceeds 2.0m, or even if it is less than that but dangerous equipment (such as high-temperature piping or rotating mechanical devices) is located below, it is stipulated that a top rail and a mid rail must always be provided.
The height of the handrail must be between 900mm and 1,100mm from the working floor surface. Furthermore, to prevent workers from slipping through the gap between the handrail and the floor surface, it is mandatory to install a mid-rail at the midpoint between the floor surface and the handrail (at a position of approx. 450mm to 550mm). On cheap, locally procured scaffold tables, there are many cases where this mid-rail is omitted for cost reduction, but this is a violation of TCVN and will immediately be subject to call-outs (fines and prohibition of use measures) during safety audits.
Regulations and International Standards for Toeboard Installation
Even under Vietnam’s current regulations (such as Circular: Thông tư 14/2013/TT-BLĐTBXH), measures to prevent objects from falling from high-altitude work areas are clearly mandated. However, regarding the specific dimensions of toeboards, US OSHA 1910.29 and Japanese JIS standards present more detailed quantitative values, which is why many major foreign-affiliated companies use them as compliance benchmarks.
Under OSHA standards, it is stipulated that a toeboard with a height of 3.5 inches (approx. 90mm, practically 100mm is recommended) or more must be installed around the entire perimeter of the platform, and the gap with the floor surface must not exceed 0.25 inches (approx. 6.3mm). This completely shuts out the risk of small bolts or socket wrenches rolling off through the gap. Hasegawa Vietnam’s products are manufactured under a design philosophy that clears all the intersections of these TCVN, JIS, and OSHA standards.
High-Altitude Work Safety Solutions Provided by Hasegawa
Hasegawa Kogyo (Hasegawa) has been a pioneer in ladders, stepladders, and high-altitude work platforms for over 60 years since its founding in Japan, leading Japan’s strict safety standards. We have transplanted that know-how directly to our Vietnamese production base (Hasegawa Vietnam Binh Duong Factory) to supply premium safety products locally that can withstand the harsh usage environments of Southeast Asia.
Product Features Balancing Safety and Work Efficiency
Hasegawa’s portable work platforms (scaffold tables) generously utilize high-strength, lightweight “aluminum alloy (A6005C-T6, etc.),” which is also used in aircraft. Commonly distributed steel (iron) scaffold tables exceed a weight of 30kg, making movement heavy labor, and in environments with Vietnam’s characteristic high humidity (average humidity above 80%), red rust develops in just 1 to 2 years, severely degrading structural strength.
On the other hand, while Hasegawa’s aluminum work platforms are approximately 40% lighter compared to steel ones of equivalent size, they easily clear the maximum load capacity of 150kg compliant with JIS standards thanks to proprietary structural analysis technology. What is particularly noteworthy is the “fall-prevention handrail” and “safety guard (toeboard),” which are perfectly systematized as standard equipment or retrofitted options.
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One-touch lock handrail: No tools are required for assembly. Simply by inserting the pins, a rigid handrail (height 1,000mm, with a mid-rail) free of wobbling is completed.
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Integrated anodized toeboard: An aluminum toeboard with a height of 100mm from the floor surface encloses the working floor without any gaps, physically blocking tools from falling. Due to the anodizing treatment (anodic oxide coating), it does not corrode even in factories that use chemical agents.
Case Studies of Implementation in Japanese and Local Factories in Vietnam
【Before: Challenges Prior to Implementation】
At the factory of a Japanese automotive parts manufacturer located in an industrial park on the outskirts of Ho Chi Minh City (Long Duc Industrial Park), mixed wood-and-steel general-purpose scaffold tables purchased from the local Vietnamese market were used for routine equipment maintenance (checking the hydraulic system of a large press located at a height of 1.8m). Handrails were only on one side, and toeboards were not installed. Near-miss incidents of dropping M12 bolts or hex wrenches onto the floor occurred an average of 3 times per month, creating a volatile situation where they could have struck workers on the lower level at any moment. Furthermore, during a global safety compliance audit by the Japanese parent company, the factory received a serious recommendation for improvement on the grounds that “it did not meet TCVN 12660 and JIS standards.”
【Action: Measures Taken by Hasegawa】
The on-site safety manager consulted with Hasegawa Vietnam. The technical team inspected the factory and proposed the introduction of an “aluminum portable work platform with handrails and toeboards” that does not interfere even in the narrow passages of the press machines and maximizes the maintenance work space. They introduced 5 units of a model with a working floor height of 1.2m (2.2m to the top of the handrail), making all-around handrails and 100mm high toeboards standard equipment.
【After: Effects Post-Implementation】
After implementation, the number of falling tools dropped sharply to 0. Workers gave high praise, stating, “Because our feet are completely enclosed, the fear caused by the sense of height disappeared, and we can now focus 100% on work using both hands.” As a result, the routine maintenance time, which previously took 45 minutes per unit, was shortened to 35 minutes, improving work efficiency by approximately 22%. In the following month’s safety audit, all non-compliance items became “Compliant,” achieving a perfect pass on the first attempt.
Reliability and Support System of Hasegawa Vietnam
Rigorous Quality Control and International Certification
Hasegawa Vietnam’s products are manufactured under internal standards that obtain or exceed both Japan’s JIS standards (JIS A 1300 / JIS B 8445) and Vietnam’s TCVN 12660 certifications. Within our own factory in Binh Duong Province, we possess state-of-the-art testing equipment equivalent to that used in Japan.
Work platforms sampled from every production batch are shipped only after clearing a “destructive strength test” to verify that structural failure does not occur under an overload of 4 times the specified maximum load capacity (for example, 600kg for a 150kg load model), as well as an “endurance fatigue test” that applies repetitive ascending and descending stress more than 50,000 times. In contrast to the shoddy welding with blowholes (voids) on the welding surfaces seen in the local Vietnamese market, our “Full Welding,” which inherits the techniques of Japanese master craftsmen, prevents cracks from occurring even during long-term, harsh on-site operations.
Local Customization Support and After-Sales Support in Vietnam
Hasegawa Vietnam possesses an overwhelming strength against site-specific concerns, such as “the factory piping is complex, and the handrails of off-the-shelf work platforms interfere” or “we want to modify it with non-marking (non-floor-staining) casters and special toeboards for use inside a semiconductor cleanroom.”
Because we have our own factory and design team locally in Vietnam, we can handle everything from drawing revisions to prototyping and production with incredibly short lead times. Furthermore, it does not end with delivery. Hasegawa’s Japanese specialized staff, along with Vietnamese engineers who have received specialized safety education, periodically visit customers’ factories (1 to 2 times a year) to provide “safety patrol inspection services” on a free or paid basis, checking for wear in the locking mechanisms of scaffold tables and diagnosing the presence of distortion in handrails. This not only extends product lifespan but also maintains the value of the factory’s safety assets over the long term.
Summary
The installation of “handrails” and “toeboards” on portable work platforms (scaffold tables) is not a mere “recommendation” but an “absolute condition” to protect workers’ lives and avoid legal risks for enterprises. As Vietnam’s working environment modernizes rapidly, adapting to safety regulations, including TCVN 12660, has become mandatory compliance for both foreign-affiliated and local companies.
Hasegawa Vietnam’s aluminum high-altitude work solutions may appear more expensive than cheap local steel scaffolding in terms of initial investment. However, considering the high durability spanning over 5 years, the elimination of accident risks due to rust or aging, the avoidance of massive compensation and business suspension losses when occupational accidents occur, and above all, the improvement of work efficiency (time reduction), the medium- to long-term return on investment (ROI) is overwhelmingly positive. Hasegawa is firmly convinced that “investment in safety is the best cost reduction.”