UNIVERSAL MANUFACTURING
We Engineer the Highest-Quality Scaffolding & Access Solutions for Every Application.
Universal Manufacturing Corp. has been pioneering the highest-quality steel scaffolding and custom-fabricated access equipment for more than 85 years. If you are looking for scaffold design & engineering support, custom engineered access solutions, temporary public access, or need quality frame, shoring, system, or tube & clamp scaffolding, Universal has the dependable, cost-effective solution for you.
Our Mission
To provide the highest-quality scaffolding equipment, fall prevention systems, and custom access solutions, backed by industry-leading customer support. We engineer better, safer, more efficient ways for you to accomplish your objectives.
Our Vision
From independent contractors to multinational corporations, our team at Universal has the capacity and expertise to add value to your organization. That's why our strength is your support.
Our History
In 1934 seventeen skilled workers and their families moved to Zelienople, Pennsylvania to establish the Universal Fittings and scaffold Company – a newly founded company specializing in ladders, mobile platforms and clamp-type steel scaffolding.
Throughout the early 1940’s, Universal continued to develop new categories of access equipment, including one of the original standard sectional frame-style scaffold designs. In 1948 we became Universal Manufacturing Corporation.
By the late 1950’s Universal had gained notoriety for its superior quality equipment and industry-leading engineering support. Our equipment was used frequently throughout this period to provide access to a number of high-profile projects, such as the US Capitol Building in Washington D.C.
Seeking to differentiate ourselves in the highly-competitive masonry industry, Universal introduced its Ezebilt Line of steel panel scaffolding. While largely obsolete by today’s standards, our patented “gravity-lock” and “swivel-action” offered users a fresh take on versatility and efficiency.
By the mid-1970’s our product offerings had expanded to include a wide-range of access products. From frame-style and tubular steel scaffolding, to material handling elevators, bleachers and emergency escape pods for the tunnel and mining industries.
Sensing an opportunity in the local market, we made the decision to acquire one of our local distributors in 1986. This company would go on to become Universal Scaffold Systems, which continues to serve Western Pennsylvania and the greater Pittsburgh-area today.
Throughout the 1990’s, Universal continued to grow its traditional lines of business; adding distributors up and down the east coast. Observing and responding to industry trends, we introduced our proprietary line of ring-lock style equipment, Universal System Scaffolding in the summer of 1994.
In the early 2000’s, Universal collaborated with General Dynamics, Electric Boat to design what would become our very first Engineered Access Solution. Using our system scaffolding as a basis, we fabricated a series of modular platforms designed to stack vertically inside the ship’s hull and provide workers with unobstructed access throughout the manufacturing process.
As part of the Tappan Zee Bridge construction project between 2013 - 2016, Universal engineered more than one-mile of system scaffolding stair towers, from 45 to more than 290-feet tall, along with a series of custom fabricated platforms, and specially designed lifting rigs to help set them all in place.
In response to an industry shift in focus towards improved safety measures and building code compliance, Universal officially introduced our Public Access Stair System in early 2020. While we had designed single-use applications in the past, this new line of equipment is the industry’s first to comply with all of the requirements set forth by the International Building Codes (IBC).