Does Your Step Stool Meet OSHA Regulations ANSI Standards?

Shure-Steps are load rated for 500 pounds, all but two models have 6 large rubber pads on the bottom to keep them from sliding on slick or wet floors. The Shure-Steps also have non-slip top surface to prevent shoes from slipping. A few of the companies that have tested and use Shure-Step products are: Boeing, United Airlines, Ford, Chrysler, Greyhound Bus, US Airways, Winn-Dixie Grocery Stores, Piggly Wiggly Grocery Stores. According to OSHA, there are no requirements for general purpose step stools under the height of 24 inches. Any step stools that are 24 inches or higher are required to have a handrail. The OSHA regulations for step stools are woven within the "Stairways & Ladders" Regulation 1926.1053 which is much too lengthy to print here.

We have reprinted the ANSI Standard for step stools below.

ANSI ASC A14.5-2007 American National Standards for Ladders - Portable Reinforced Plastic - Safety Requirements

This standard prescribes rules governing the safe construction, design, testing, care and use of portable reinforced plastic ladders of various Types and styles. Ladder Types included are:

Duty Rating             Ladder Type     Working Load (pounds)
Special Duty                  IAA                     375
Extra Heavy-Duty        IA                     300
Heavy-Duty                   I                          250
Medium-Duty              II                         225
Light-Duty                    III                        200

Ladder styles include ladder type step stools, portable extension, step, trestle, sectional, combination, single, platform, and articulating ladders, but excluding ladders in and on mines, the fire services, mobile equipment, hoisting equipment, work platforms, antenna communications towers, transmission towers, utility poles, and chimneys. It does not cover special-purpose ladders that do not meet the general requirements of this standard, nor does it cover ladder accessories, including, but not limited to, ladder levelers, ladder stabilizers or stand-off devices, ladder jacks, or ladder straps or hooks, that may be installed on or used in conjunction with ladders.

Note: Ladder type step stools are covered by A14.5. It is recognized that a step stool standard is under development. When the step stool standard is approved, A14.5 will no longer cover ladder type step stools.These requirements are also intended to prescribe rules and criteria for labeling/marking of the kinds of portable ladders cited in this standard, but exclusive of furniture type step stools and special purpose ladders. These labeling/marking requirements do not apply to those situations where training, supervision, or documented safety procedures would be in conflict, or serve in lieu of, these labeling/marking requirements.

Step Stool for Portable Building

A portable building sitting on skids has an elevated doorway threshold that makes entering and exiting the building or storage room challenging because of the greater distance from the ground to the threshold. When the person entering or exiting the portable building has to carry tools or equipment this task becomes even more difficult. In this situation the need for a step or stairs in front of the portable building doorway to enable workers to have a safe entrance and exit from the building is a must.

If this building or tool room is in a remote location or out in a field where access to the building is difficult, using a lightweight portable step stool that won't tip over because it sinks into the soft ground is your best option for a temporary or portable solution. Oil field workers will grab the nearest object around them to use as a step for the portable building but a block of wood isn't really considered a safe step stool. In fact a random block of wood used as a step stool can be dangerous, especially when workers are carrying heavy tools or equipment in and out the building or storage room.


Most step stools are designed with legs and should be avoided at all cost for use on soft ground because the legs can sink into the ground when heavy weight such as worker carrying tools steps on it. Attaching a metal stair can solve this problem but if the building is on an incline it may be problematic. A step stool without legs is necessary to keep it from sinking into soft ground and remaining stable even on an incline.

There are environments where the portable buildings are being finished out on the interior and the skid is sitting on concrete until the interior of the portable building is finished and then the building is shipped to it's destination. While this building is being finished electricians and carpenters have to get up and down into the building so using a step stool that won't slide on the concrete floor.

The makers of the Shure-Step safety step stools have taken these problems into consideration when they designed their product. Not only does the Shure-Step have a one-inch perimeter base instead of legs, it also has 6 large rubber pads on the bottom to keep it fro sliding on slick or wet concrete if the portable building is on a concrete pad. The Shure-Step weighs 10 pounds, is made of lightweight polyethylene plastic and will last for years even when left out in the weather.

CLICK HERE to order Shure-Steps

Safe Step Stools for Kids in Elementary Schools

How will your shorter students reach the water fountain at your school if it is installed at a height that is only comfortable for older, taller students? When elementary schools are built, especially when they were built many years ago, the needs of the young students were not taken into account for in the design of the bathrooms, water fountains and lab counter tops. Some newer elementary schools have mounted high & low water fountains so most of the younger students can reach them but inside the bathrooms the sinks are installed at height that keeps most kindergartners from being able to reach the sink faucet to wash their hands. And without being elevated some of the children just won't be able to reach the toilet either...the toilet seat is too high.

Safe Step Stool for Kids

So how do you elevate young students so they can safely get a drink of water and wash their hands?? Find a really tough step stool for them to use that will elevate the child safely. But make sure it is very durable, remember we're talking about kids that can sometimes tear just about anything up. A step stool that kids use at school also has to have non slip rubber pads on the bottom of the step to keep it from sliding on slick or wet concrete. This step stool should also have some sort of abrasive top to keep the students wet shoes from slipping on the top. Because, in a bathroom there is water and when you mix kids and water you have a mess! And don't forget the water fountain has water that gets splashed all around it and on the ground so the kids can stomp in the mud.

Let's not forget the science lab counter tops that are built at a height that some students need a lift in order to participate in an experiment. The kids in these classes need a safe platform like step stool that is about 6 inches tall so they can move around on top of the step stool.

CLICK HERE to order Shure-Steps

Safe Step Stool for Fast Lube Mechanics

Fast lubes provide a service for their customers by providing periodic maintenance in a location convenient to their customers. But getting the oil & oil filter changed is just one of many services they offer. So each fast lube location has to hire trained mechanics to maintain their customers cars.

Fast lube mechanics come in all shapes and sizes...just like the cars, SUV's and trucks they service. So it only makes sense that a fast lube would have safe step stools that will make their mechanics job easier. At most fast lubes you have an "underground mechanic" whose job is to drain the oil and replace the oil filter. Another mechanic above the pit servicing the customers vehicle may need to use a step stool to reach into the engine compartment to check fluid levels, inspect belts, hoses and air filter. The mechanic in the pit below the vehicle may need a safe step stool to reach an oil filter or drain plug. A lot of times in the oil change bay the surface that the mechanic is standing on is a metal grating. Not the easiest surface to keep a step stool from sliding on.

So how do you know which step stool will elevate the mechanic safely and not slide or tip over? The mechanic won't always need the step stool in the oil change bay so moving the step stool easily will have to be a concern as well.

Shure-Step offers a lightweight, plastic step stool that is rated for 500 pounds. The 10 pound Shure-Step mechanics step is easy to move around and they come in black to hide most grease and grime. It's rated for 500 pounds well, you know, for your big mechanics. This step is also stackable. So let's say a 1-Ton 4X4 truck pulls into your oil change bay. Grab two 10 inch high Nobby Top Shure-Steps from in between the bay doors (where they store easily and out of the way) and your mechanic can stack one step on top of the other and have a 16 inch high work platform to check under the hood or to reach the oil filter below.

CLICK HERE to order Shure-Steps

Service Centers Step Stool

Large truck mechanics looking for a step stool to use in their service centers will use just about anything they can find that is conveniently laying around. That includes milk crates, chairs, cheap flimsy step stools, blocks of wood or anything else that might elevate them to reach their work. I would like to point out that none of those items are designed for mechanics to use while working on large trucks. In fact those items might just cost the mechanic lost time from work from falling off of them when used as a step stool. It is human nature to want to use the most convenient item because we want to get our work done quickly. But using those items as a step stool may be an accident waiting to happen. Why? Because those items are NOT designed for a mechanic to stand on! Those items when used as a step stool can ruin your company's safety record.

Why not research the web and look for a safe step stool that is designed for mechanics. A step stool that won't tip over. A step stool that when oil or grease is spilled on it won't endanger the mechanic standing on it. A step stool that is tough and durable so it will last. A step stool that is rated for 500 pounds. A step stool that will adjust in height so that the mechanic can work comfortably on trucks that are different heights or he can work on different systems of the truck.

Does such a mechanic's step stool exist? And if so why haven't you heard of it? There is a step stool designed by a mechanic that will solve your safety nightmare. It is called Shure-Step and the president of the company, David DuPont, designed it after falling off a milk crate when he was working on a 4-wheel drive truck. After searching for a safe replacement step stool for his milk crate and unable to find one, he designed the Shure-Step.

When you order your Shure-Step and use it for a few weeks you'll even say " This is one tough step stool, well worth it's price". 

CLICK HERE to order Shure-Steps

Shurestep Step Stool at Work

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Safe Step Stool for Large Truck Mechanics

Truck mechanics need a safe step stool when working on the engines of large trucks. Finding a heavy duty step stool that will adjust in height and won't tip over may seem like an impossible task. Remember that these large trucks and the mechanics who work on them come in different heights so an adjustable step stool can make the mechanics job a LOT easier. Once the mechanic is in the engine compartment and is working on the engine or inside the engine compartment he may or may not need his step stool. There is some engine work that requires the truck mechanic to be working on top of the engine where he needs to stand on a step stool and then there is engine work where he doesn't need to stand on anything but the floor. Having a lightweight step stool that the truck mechanic can easily move out of the way and then slide it back into place will make the mechanics job go a lot faster and safer.

There are metal step stands that can be used but these steps are usually too big and bulky to get into the engine compartment for the mechanic to be able to move around the engine. So if the truck mechanic is working on the top of the engine and needs to step down to work elsewhere in the engine compartment, moving the large bulky metal stand out of his way might be hard to do. The other problem with the metal stands is they usually don't have sufficient rubber pads on the bottom to keep the stand from sliding on the concrete floor when the mechanic is standing on it.

Truck mechanics can buy a plastic step stool sold on most tool trucks, but those step stools are usually flimsy and don't last very long. Nor do they have rubber pads on the bottom of the step to keep them from sliding.

The folks at Shure-Step have actually worked on trucks and understand what works for truck mechanics. The mechanics step stools they offer have a rough tread on the top of the step, large rubber pads on the bottom of the step, and the Shure-Step mechanics step is load rated for 500 pounds. Oh, and yes it's also stackable.

Shure-Step is a stackable safety step rated at 500 pounds that has many uses; Seniors, bariatric patients, physical therapists, rehabilitation facilities, bus, train, transportation drivers, warehouse workers, mechanics, technicians, aircraft maintenance and safe steps for airlines, even children benefit from the stability and strength of the Shure-Step.

CLICK HERE to order Shure-Steps