Large aerial work platforms are expected to be deployed safely and efficiently even at super-tall construction sites exceeding 100 meters in height. On the 10th, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced that it has newly designated large aerial work platforms with a total weight exceeding 40 tons as special construction machinery and established the relevant specifications and licensing standards.

As large-scale facility construction projects such as semiconductor clusters, AI data centers, and ultra-large wind power plants have recently increased, demand for work at super-tall heights—which traditional construction machinery such as cranes struggled to handle—has been growing. With this measure, it is expected that restrictions on equipment operation will be lifted and past difficulties, such as the limited availability of equipment for on-site use, will be resolved.

Until now, large aerial work platforms exceeding 40 tons were effectively in a legal blind spot. Aerial work platforms (commonly known as sky lifts) were previously registered and operated as special motor vehicles, but large equipment was difficult to register as a vehicle due to operating restrictions under the Road Act. At the same time, they were not classified as construction machinery under the Construction Machinery Management Act, which constrained their deployment at construction sites. With this new designation, large aerial work platforms can now be officially registered and used after undergoing type approval and new registration inspections.

The specifications of the newly designated large aerial work platforms include a rated working load of 0.5 tons or more, a total weight exceeding 40 tons, the ability to be transported in disassembled form, and no height restriction. To operate them, a Class 1 large vehicle driver's license and a construction machinery crane operator's license are each required. At construction sites, equipment can be operated with a crane operator's license, and when disassembled and transported at 40 tons or below, it can be driven on roads with a Class 1 large vehicle driver's license.

Under the current Construction Machinery Management Act, a total of 27 types of construction machinery are designated, including excavators, tower cranes, and special construction machinery. Special construction machinery refers to equipment equipped with special work attachments to perform specialized tasks, and is separately announced by the Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. Even before this designation, eight types of machinery, including road maintenance trucks, pavement breakers, and concrete mixer trailers, had been designated as construction machinery.

Kim Sung-hwan, Director of the Construction Industry Division at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, stated, "The introduction of large aerial work platforms will significantly improve the safety and efficiency of new construction work for super-tall and large buildings as well as the maintenance of existing structures." He added, "We will continue to drive innovation so that advanced equipment can be freely deployed at construction sites and contribute to improving productivity in the construction industry."