Temporary Handrail Systems
HERMEQ temporary handrail systems put edge protection and handrail runs on slab edges, roof edges, excavations and floor openings without any fixings into the structure. The range is built around the SG4 system, in which a galvanized foot carries each post and the posts and rails are joined with standard scaffold fittings. Posts and rails are made from 1.9 in galvanized scaffold tube in high-yield steel, so the same components can be put up, extended and moved from one stage of a job to the next, on construction sites, roofing work and maintenance projects.
Parts of a modular handrail system
SG4 handrail feet
SG4 handrail feet are the base of the Shorguard guardrail system: each foot holds a tube post upright on the working surface, so the run stands without any fixing into the slab, roof or ground.
Galvanized scaffold tube for posts and rails
High-yield galvanized scaffold tube makes the posts that sit in the feet and the horizontal rails that run between them. Because it is made to the standard scaffold diameter, it takes standard scaffold couplers, and the guardrail can be joined with the fittings a crew already uses on scaffold and shoring work.
Freestanding guardrail or a fixed guardrail system
A guardrail standing on SG4 feet is the right method for any edge that has a surface the feet can sit on and a reason not to drill it. That covers finished concrete slabs and roof coverings that should not be penetrated, openings at ground level, and runs that move as the work moves, since the run is lifted and reset with no holes to patch afterward. The foot is designed so that the barrier does not interrupt access below it, and people and materials keep moving freely underneath the rail line, which matters on floors that stay in use while the edge is protected.
A system fixed into the structure is the choice where the protection has to sit on the building face itself, outside the slab edge, or stay in one position for the life of the frame, and HERMEQ covers that work in its edge protection systems. Where the hazard is material falling from upper floors onto a sidewalk or work area below, safety fan systems on the building face catch the debris. Stair access between levels is handled by temporary stairways and bridges.
Temporary guard rails for slabs, roofs and openings
Slab edges on multi-story buildings
On concrete and steel frames the guardrail follows each floor edge as the slab is completed and moves up with the frame.
Roof edges during roofing and maintenance
Roofing work travels along the perimeter, so the run is often set up section by section ahead of the crew and taken down behind it.
Excavations, elevator shafts and floor openings
Around an excavation the hazard is on every side, so the rail encloses the opening completely and stands back from the edge, on ground that will not give way, with one controlled point of access. Elevator shafts and floor openings inside a building need the rail on every open side until walls or covers go in, and it is often removed and replaced as trades work in the shaft.
Renovations and public walkways
On small renovations and repairs, feet and tube make a compact barrier that a small crew puts up quickly. Beside a sidewalk or walkway the people on the other side are members of the public, so the run needs to be continuous, with no rail ends projecting past the end posts into the walkway.
Sizing and ordering temporary handrail systems
Choosing tube lengths for posts and rails
Shorter lengths of tube make the posts, and longer lengths make the rails. The range runs from 5 to 21 ft, so rail lengths can be matched to the bay spacing and the length of the edge with as few joints as possible, while the shortest lengths close small gaps and turn corners.
Ground and surface conditions
The SG4 foot has a slip-resistant base that holds its position on site surfaces, and its reinforced footplate limits movement when it is set on uneven ground.
Counting the parts for a run
A straight run needs one more post than it has bays, and every post needs its own foot. Each bay takes a top rail, a midrail and a toeboard, and every joint between a rail and a post takes a coupler, so the coupler count follows directly from the number of posts and rails.
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Frequently Asked Questions
A guardrail stops people from falling over an open edge or into an opening, and it is built with a top rail, a midrail and a toeboard. A handrail is a rail people hold for support, most often along stairs and ramps.
A guardrail is collective protection that keeps everyone back from the edge without anyone wearing equipment, while a harness stops a fall after it starts and depends on each worker using it correctly. Harnesses remain the method for tasks that take a worker outside or over the rail.
A toeboard runs along the base of the guardrail and stops tools, materials and debris from being kicked or rolled off the edge onto people below. On any edge with workers or a public area beneath it, the toeboard is part of the run.
Yes. HERMEQ supplies the high-yield scaffold tube in standard lengths and also cuts it to length on request. Cut tube suits edges that do not divide evenly into standard lengths, such as short returns at corners and gaps between columns.
The scaffold tube and the SG4 feet are galvanized steel, a corrosion-resistant finish made for all-weather site conditions. That suits guardrail left in place outside through a long build, on roofs, slab edges and excavation perimeters exposed to rain.