While the UK isn't a litigious society, it does make sense to know your legal rights and responsibilities when lending a ladder (or any other equipment) to someone else.  There are slight differences in the way this works for professional users and for people who are lending a ladder to a friend or neighbours, but in both instances the lender can be held liable for any accidents occurring as a result of using the ladder under certain circumstances.   On a building site contractors may ask to use your ladder if the ones they have aren't tall enough or aren't the best type for the job.  If you agree to lend [...]

As the schools go back and we start to get somewhere resembling normality it is understandable that there may be some trepidation and concern about how safe it is. There are several places in Asia where children have to use ladders to access education and healthcare.  The most notable being the Chinese village where metal ladders were installed to replace the dangerous wooden ones.  Many of the people from the village have now been resettled in a nearby valley making their access to education, healthcare and trade is much easier, however, some families declined the move and have chosen to stay behind and continue with their traditional way of life, even [...]

We would never recommend using a homemade ladder for any purpose where you intend to bear weight on it, but desperate times call for desperate measures, like for the inmates at Thane prison in India.  Nine inmates collaborated on an escape plan to flee the jail, with a handmade ladder intended to provide an escape route.  The gang had been building a ladder from iron pipes, believed to have been stripped from the plumbing system, bound together with elastic that had been taken from underwear.  The ladder was discovered in a construction area by prison guards who had been tipped off to the escape attempt.   Also in India, residents in [...]

Few of us are in the financial position we expected to be in at the start of 2020.  January seems like a very long time ago, and a lot has happened in the last eight months, with more changes to come.  Some people may have lost their jobs or their businesses due to the pandemic, while others who can work from home may have saved money by not commuting or buying lunch every day.  If you booked a holiday for 2020 you may have lost money if it was cancelled or you decided not to go, while those who didn't book anything, hoping for a last minute deal, will have found [...]

One sure-fire way of guaranteeing you are buying a quality ladder is to purchase from Midland Ladders.  We're experienced in the rapid supply of all types of ladders to all industries, from window cleaning to HVG cleaning, from the domestic market to professional roofing ladders.  In many cases we work directly with the manufacturer to ensure you're getting the lowest possible price and not paying several intermediaries when you buy a ladder from us.   You might think that ladders aren't affected by fakes, after all, they're not an everyday purchase and the market for ladders is nowhere near the scale as the market for food and drink – both things [...]

There are many different types of ladder for all sorts of different jobs.  The average person could probably name an extension ladder and step ladder as types of ladder, but the reality is there are many more variations on the humble ladder than you might think.  Roofing ladders are designed to hook over the roof ridge and have spreader bars along the back to prevent damage to the roof surface.  Staircase ladders are designed to be set up across stairs and uneven surfaces, while multi-purpose ladders can be used as staircase ladders, straight ladder, step ladders and more.    In warehouses you would find podium steps – sturdy stepladders designed for [...]

For most of us a ladder is a way to achieve the height we need for a particular task, such as changing a light bulb, clearing a gutter or putting things away in the loft.  Obviously, we need to be as safe as possible when we use ladders to avoid accidents and injury, but there are some ladder users for whom personal safety is a secondary concern – the police.  Police units and military forces use ladders to gain access to criminals and places they need to attack in the name of public safety, with less regard for their own.    In the heat of a police raid or a military [...]

Even the most experienced ladder users can learn something new about better ways to use their ladders, and it's often these old hands who come up with new safety devices and accessories for ladder users because they have literally been there and done it.   We particularly like a tip from Reuben Saltzman, which is to use electrical tape on the parts of your ladder that will be rested against a house or a wall.  The electrical tape stops the ladder marking the surface it rests against, which is very important for tradespeople who regularly use ladders around a customer's home.  You could also use rubber or self-amalgamating tape to provide [...]

Loading and unloading goods vehicles can be heavy work, especially if the vehicle has no tailgate or items are to be unloaded from the side rather than the rear of the truck, where a hydraulic tailgate may make access easier.  Palletised items can be moved efficiently with forklift trucks, but there are a number of applications where cargo can't efficiently be loaded onto a pallet and where a single vehicle may be taking items to several depots, meaning some items must be removed from the middle or front of the vehicle.   This poses a problem, especially for small depots which may not have a permanent loading dock from which to [...]

As the economy opens back up and people return to work the importance of maintaining social distancing and sanitary conditions is becoming more and more important to stop a second wave sending the country back into lockdown.  Although some construction work has been allowed to continue during the lockdown, and it was among the first industries to return, not all sites and jobs will have been able to abide by social distancing guidelines and this may still be a problem in some places.   As construction workers return and other ladder using trades start to operate, it's vital that some new protocols are adhered to in the workplace, particularly around the [...]