Cherry pickers are a common site on many work sites where access to heights is required. The benefit that articulating cherry pickers bring, compared to straight booms, is their flexibility and increased capability to reposition at various heights. This flexibility and fantastic reach makes them a must-have for many work sites.
Also called boom lifts or just booms, cherry pickers are mounted on a rough terrain chassis, and can be driven while at height, letting you adjust the working area and navigate around the work site without retracting the boom. For models that aren't mobile, they will usually be mounted on a trailer or have a tow-hitch equipped, letting them be easily towed from location to location by your ute or work vehicle. A number of basic models have a work clearance of over 15m.
Due to their primary use being outdoors, articulating cherry pickers are generally equipped to handle rough terrain, with either a rough terrain chassis, oscillated axis, extending axis or a combination.
Larger articulating cherry pickers may also feature a telescopic boom, letting you position yourself perfectly before extending the boom to your preferred working height. This feature depends on the size and type of cherry picker you have though, so double check with your dealer/seller before purchasing or hiring to be sure.
There are a few other things to consider before buying or hiring an articulated cherry picker. First and foremost, the operators who will be driving and working on it. For all work done above 11m, your workers will need an elevated work platform (EWP) high-risk work licence. While anything under 11m only needs a 'yellow card'.
Many of your workers will probably be licensed already, but most major suppliers of cherry pickers also offer training courses for both the EWP licence and the yellow card, if necessary.
One of the uses many people overlook when it comes to articulating cherry pickers is their ability to work below ground level. Their solid, well-balanced design, along with their articulated boom, means these cherry pickers can lower the work platform below ground level, giving your workers access to areas that may have been inaccessible previously.
