“Cherry picker” is the everyday name for a boom lift with a basket that carries a worker to height: for facade cleaning, signage, lighting, tree work, banners and building maintenance. Suppliers list the same machines as boom lifts or aerial work platforms. UAE Equipment Rental does not rent cherry pickers; this guide is general information to help you ask a specialist supplier for the right machine.
Jobs a cherry picker suits
- Work on facades, signs and lighting that must be reached from outside the building.
- Tasks above obstacles such as walls, parked cars or landscaping.
- Short, repeated jobs at different points, where scaffolding would take longer to erect.
For work directly overhead on a flat floor, such as ceilings, a scissor lift is often simpler.
Self-propelled or vehicle-mounted
Self-propelled booms drive around a site on their own wheels. Vehicle-mounted cherry pickers sit on a truck and suit jobs along roads and streets, moving quickly between work points. Working from a public road may need permission and traffic management; the supplier or your contractor should confirm this.
Height and reach
Measure the height of the highest work point and how far out from the machine it is. Working height is usually the basket height plus about 2 metres. If the machine must stand back behind a wall or a planted area, the horizontal reach matters as much as the height.
Ground and site conditions
The machine needs firm, level ground to set up. Check for soft sand, kerbs, slopes and underground services where it will stand, and overhead cables near the work.
Safety and training
The operator should be trained on the machine type, and many sites ask for certificates such as IPAF cards. Occupants wear a harness attached to the basket’s anchor point. Keep people out of the area below the basket.
Questions to ask a supplier
- Which machine and working height suit my job and the obstacles around it?
- Is an operator included, and what training does the operator hold?
- Is any permission needed to work from the road?
- What are the delivery and collection arrangements?