Forklift Mounted Safety Platform (Man Cage / Personnel Cage)

A forklift-mounted work platform (often called a personnel platform, safety cage or man cage) is a purpose-built steel enclosure that fixes securely to a forklift's carriage or forks, allowing people to be lifted to work at height. It is intended for occasional, short-duration tasks where an elevating work platform isn't reasonably practicable, and although it costs less than owning an EWP, cost alone isn't a sound basis for choosing it.

The forklift man cage course is online training for forklift operators and the workers they lift in a forklift-mounted safety platform. It teaches how to fit, check and use the platform safely, and what to do in an emergency. Trainees watch short videos and answer questions after each module. They get a certificate of achievement when they finish.

Forklift man cage training is for everyone involved in lifting a person on a forklift:

• forklift operators who raise and lower the platform
• workers who are lifted in the platform and work from it
• supervisors who plan or oversee the work

A person in the cage may also need working at heights training if their work goes outside the platform.

Forklift man cages are used wherever a forklift is already on site and a short job needs to be done at height:

• warehousing and logistics: stocktakes, high shelves and racking repairs
• manufacturing: overhead lights, pipes and machinery checks
• retail distribution: high shelving and displays
• construction: quick overhead jobs for electricians, painters and installers, when an EWP or scaffold isn't available
• facilities maintenance: light bulbs, high ceilings, signs and building repairs
• food and beverage: high-bay storage and processing plants

Yes. The forklift man cage course explains the main platform types and how to match a platform to a forklift. Platforms and forklifts differ, so your employer must also show you the platform and forklift you'll use. Always follow the manufacturer's instructions and stay within the safe working load shown on the platform and the forklift's load plate.

Yes. The person driving the forklift must be trained and competent to operate a forklift. In practice, this means a current forklift operator's certificate, sometimes called an OSH certificate. The forklift man cage course teaches how to use the platform. It doesn't teach general forklift driving.

The person lifted in the cage doesn't need a forklift certificate, but they do need man cage training. DT Training's Forklift Operator's Certificate course covers the forklift driving

No. New Zealand law doesn't say forklift man cage training must be done by an accredited trainer. The Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 lets your business meet its duties in the way that suits it. The result must be at least as safe as WorkSafe New Zealand's guidance, including the forklift Approved Code of Practice (ACOP).

Online, the forklift operator and the person in the cage can train together at work, with no half day off site. If you'd rather have a trainer, TR Driver Training runs an in-class man cage course at your site for groups. It includes a practical assessment and Unit Standard 18409. Call 0800 637 000.

No. Unit standards are optional for forklift man cage work in New Zealand. You can train for competency, as in the forklift man cage course, or do a unit standard course. This course doesn't award unit standards.

The matching unit standard is 18409, Use a forklift mounted safety platform in the workplace (level 3, 4 credits). It's being replaced by skill standard 40737, Operate a forklift and perform a task with a working platform. The last date to be assessed for 18409 is 31 December 2027. Skill standard 40737 also needs a forklift skill standard (40735) or equal, and unit standard 23229, Use safety harness system when working at height.

Forklift man cage training is usually refreshed every 3 years. No law in New Zealand sets a fixed time. The guidance in Unit Standard 18409 recommends refresher training every three years, in line with the forklift ACOP.

Refresh sooner if a worker hasn't used a man cage for a long time. Also refresh after you get a new platform or forklift, or after an incident.

An optional practical assessment checklist is provided. Your employer decides how to check that you can use the platform safely. For example, a supervisor can watch you fit, check and use your own platform and forklift before anyone is lifted for real work. 

Yes. Buy one forklift man cage course licence per trainee and assign them to your team. You can track each trainee's progress, add managers at no extra cost and download reports. Managers can create a certificate of achievement for each trainee when they finish.

Yes. Trainees get a certificate of achievement when they finish the online forklift man cage course. The course doesn't issue an operator's certificate or ID card, because it has no practical assessment. Keep the certificate with your other training records as proof the training was done.

The forklift man cage course pairs well with:

• Forklift Operator's Certificate: for the person driving the forklift
• Working at Heights Training: for workers whose job goes outside the cage
• EWP Training: for when a scissor lift or boom lift is the better choice

The forklift man cage course takes around 1 hour, depending on the trainee. It has six short video modules, each followed by questions. Trainees can spread the modules over more than one session.

• You will need one course licence per trainee taking the course - you can't use one licence for multiple trainees
• You will need a computer, smartphone or tablet with internet access to take the theory training
• Trainees should have access to the forklift-mounted safety platform they'll use at work

Yes. The forklift man cage course has language and literacy support:

• Video subtitles: available in 25 languages. Choose the language in the video.
• Questions: can be viewed in 76 languages - check the language option at the top of the page (note that written answers must be in English).
• Question audio: every question has an audio recording in English
• Documents: English
• Some captions are AI-generated and, as such, may have occasional errors.