Dimensions
What is a return?
A return is the section of scaffold that turns a corner and runs down the adjoining elevation. It is a common source of disagreement in measurement and pricing.
Use this diagram+
Free to use on your own site, in training material or in a course handout, as long as the credit link stays on it. Paste this where you want the diagram to appear.
<figure>
<img src="https://scaffoldoptix.co.uk/glossary/return/diagram.svg" alt="return — scaffold diagram from ScaffoldOptix" width="880" height="620" loading="lazy">
<figcaption>
<a href="https://scaffoldoptix.co.uk/glossary/return">What is a return?</a> — diagram by
<a href="https://scaffoldoptix.co.uk">ScaffoldOptix</a>
</figcaption>
</figure>Physically, a return is just scaffold round a corner. Commercially it is contentious, because a short return costs more per metre to build than an equivalent length of straight run — the corner itself takes time, and the return needs its own standards, ledgers and transoms.
Firms handle this differently. Some measure returns at face value and carry the extra in the rate; some measure to a minimum. Both are defensible and only one of them is in any given quote.
The fix is not a universal convention but a stated one. A quote that says how returns are measured cannot be argued about later.
What goes wrong on site
- Returns measured one way on one quote and another way on the next.
- A return added on site to reach round a corner, with no variation raised.
- Assuming the client shares your convention because nobody said otherwise.