A cherry picker is any aerial lift with an articulating or telescoping boom and a platform or bucket at the end, named after machines built for orchard work. Electricians use them for high-bay lighting, building exteriors, parking lot poles and signs. Operators need training, a harness tied off to the platform and a constant eye on overhead lines, a leading cause of lift deaths.
Rent a 60-foot cherry picker for the warehouse lights, the scissor lift can't reach over the racking.
Also heard as
- boom lift
- bucket truck
- JLG
Related terms
Narrow back
Linemen's nickname for inside electricians, implying they never climb poles or haul heavy line gear.
Gang box
Big lockable steel chest that holds a crew's tools and material on a jobsite overnight.
Boomer
Traveling electrician or lineman who follows big projects from city to city wherever the work is.