x9200 wrote:I am just trying to address your points. You shared the concern that if it was legal (using the pulleys), people would use it.
From my observation Singaporeans do not get that easy involved in a specialized (DIY) work unless it is their professionally learned skill (changing a puncture tire one of the examples).
Then you said, how about the
Movers, but this was a different thing - as the professionals for handling heavy/bulky items they would unlikely resort to a basic, simple pulley but for completely different reasons. This all IMO explains why we don't see it around. It is a bit more complicated thing than changing a tire or hanging lights from the ceiling but too limited in capabilities to be attractive for the relocation professionals.
I believe there is a pretty narrow range of "machinery" that needs a certificate/license to be operated. The whole rest is based on general law or for the professional use, the safety framework (SWP, RA etc. as of Workplace Safety & Health Act) I mentioned earlier.
Sure if Raj does it the way that there will be a heavy weight on a weak support swinging over a sidewalk full of pedestrians he will likely get fined or even detained by the first police patrol on the spot, but if he does it properly, not endangering anybody/anything, then why not?
specific to the tire and pulley analogy: changing a tire is quite different as it is cheap as heck (and usually not too long) to get your car towed to the nearest auto or tire shop. $40-50. i believe you get free tire change service with certain insurance policies and AAA membership.
why would singaporeans get their hands dirty when the financial outlay and risk is minimal? and would they behave the same way overseas when a tow is US$250 and you gotta wait 3 hours?
i mentioned that we would see more singaporeans using pulleys if it were allowed or tolerated... because it costs about $100 or more to engage
Movers. way more if stairs are involved. the locals are well known for finding creative ways to save money.
perhaps the outlay of $150-200 (as laid out by eagle in his really detailed set of instructions above) negates any potential "savings"... and perhaps they prefer not to be stuck with a set of pulley and ropes after the job is done. or perhaps you speculate correctly they are just not the DIY sort and cannot be bothered.
but if light weight boxes can be safely and easily manipulated up several floors by a reusable set of pulley and ropes (and bars, and such), and going by the "no harm no foul" logic, wouldn't a
Moving Company opt to do this until stopped or penalized by the authorities? and if there are no laws in place to prevent such activity in the first place, would we not see more movers "safely" pulling up items from floor to floor? if singaporean home movers don't do this to save a buck, i would imagine plenty of moving company towkays would be eager to adopt it and charge an in-between rate ($10/floor with pulleys instead of $20/floor by walking).
all lifting gear, appliances and machinery, when used for/at work, come under WHS act. the law is pretty clear on what counts and it's a very widely worded. i read up on the WHS act before getting certified as a DWD; statutory compliance (authorized examiners) are certainly required, as are the paperwork.
which brings me to assume that if raj is not being paid to do this, it may not be relevant. but surely the reason for not using pulleys go beyond uncreative singaporeans who do not (like to) DIY...?
my exposure to
condos and HDB in singapore is somewhat limited. but what i DO know is, if you do not own the (entire)
property, you need to get permission to move stuff into your home through unconventional methods (via windows/balconys/etc).
my father owns a detached home in singapore. he verbally permitted a crane to enter his compound for the purposes of lifting large objects off a flat bed truck into his indoor garden (static art pieces) and into his house (piano via second floor balcony).
when a few of the said items were moved into a strata title property (5-unit town house development, no guards, each unit nominates a member to the committee), permission was required from the committee. i assume that the same would apply when attaching a temporary lifting appliance for the movement of items from common property (say, the ground floor corridor) into private property.
i cannot imagine if i were to be caught using a pulley, even if attached well within my home, whose bylaws are actual government statutes (Sentosa 2008 Act or what not), how much dirty looks and letters i would get. and this is in a place that is, by my standards, very loosely populated and i would thus be more likely to get away with it. if not for the cameras and security patrols...
so, if you don't get caught, nothing happens. i really hope so. i cannot imagine the town council act for each area would be anything but loosely worded.
but getting caught notwithstanding, i know for a fact that HDB residents have regularly been cited, whether rightly or wrongly so (and many, wrongly accused), for attaching things such as prayer/joss stick pots, bird cages and potted plants near/by their windows and corridors. this is simply to reduce killer litter incidents.
i am implying that hanging up a potted plant somewhat permanently is the same as temporarily attaching (30 minutes?) a pulley, but the end result is likely the same - if it is likely to fall off and cause injury, it is likely to be not legal. if you get caught, you will be warned. if you are warned a few times, harsher penalties will apply.
surely this is not the way (nor feeling) to move into or be welcomed into a new neighborhood?
so i put to you again - if a simple non-attachable pulley, for the purposes of lifting up light weight boxes from the outside of a building, were at the very least tolerated, the locals would be using it with more regularity - especially in recent times of increased activity in the housing market.