A CD-5 is the permit required for outrigger-supported suspended scaffold -- the two-point systems hung from beams cantilevered over a parapet or roof edge, rather than tied back some other way. The name stuck around on every job site in the city, but the actual filing mechanism changed in 2023. If your schedule depends on getting one of these approved, it's worth knowing exactly how the process works now, not how it used to.
What "CD-5" Means Today
Historically, CD-5 was a standalone paper form -- "Notification of Staging and Outrigger Beam Use by Special Riggers," later reissued as the "CD5: Suspended Scaffold Application" -- filed in person at DOB's Cranes & Derricks office. As of November 15, 2023, DOB retired new CD-5 paper submissions. All new suspended scaffold filings, including outrigger-supported systems, now go through DOB NOW: Build under the Suspended Scaffold (SC) work type, with separate subcategories for standard suspended scaffold and industrial rope access (IRA).
In practice, "CD-5" is still the shorthand everyone uses -- GCs, riggers, even DOB inspectors on site -- for this category of permit. But there's no longer a separate CD-5 submission sitting outside DOB NOW. If a vendor or expeditor is describing a process that sounds like the old paper form, it's worth double-checking they're actually working inside the current system.
Who Can File
The applicant of record has to be one of three license types, and which one applies depends on scope:
- Special or Master Rigger — filings route to DOB's Cranes & Derricks unit for review.
- Special or Master Sign Hanger — also reviewed by Cranes & Derricks.
- Licensed PE/RA (design professional) — filings route to the applicable Borough Office instead.
One detail that trips up filers switching over from the old process: the SC work type can't be combined with any other work type in the same DOB NOW filing. It has to stand on its own. A filing that tries to bundle it with another scope gets kicked back, not flagged for a quick fix.
Notification Requirements for Install and Removal
Outrigger-supported suspended scaffold isn't just permit-and-go. NYC Building Code §3314.4.1.5 requires notifying DOB at least 24 hours, but not more than 48 hours, before the initial installation or final removal of an adjustable suspended scaffold at a site. Since the DOB NOW transition, that notification is submitted electronically against the job filing number (or the legacy CD5/SR number, for older permits still active) rather than called in or filed separately. Multiple installation/removal cycles on the same job each need their own notification -- this isn't a one-time step at the start of the job.
What Happens to a Permit That's Already Issued
Plenty of active jobs are still running on a CD-5 that was issued before the November 2023 cutover, and the rules for those depend on timing:
- A legacy CD-5 issued or renewed after November 2022 can generally still be amended, renewed, or have install/removal notifications filed through DOB NOW, referencing its existing SR number.
- A CD-5 that expired before November 2022 can't simply be renewed. It needs a brand-new filing in DOB NOW, built from scratch -- which takes longer than a renewal and is a bad surprise to discover mid-schedule.
If a job has been sitting on an old permit for a while, it's worth confirming early which category it falls into, not after the next access cycle is already scheduled.
What Actually Causes Delays
DOB's review queue gets blamed for slow approvals more often than it deserves. In practice, the filings that move fastest are the ones that avoid a short list of avoidable mistakes:
- Wrong applicant pathway. Filing as a rigger when the scope actually needs PE/RA sign-off (or vice versa) sends the application to the wrong review queue, where it sits before bouncing back.
- Combining work types. Trying to fold the SC filing into another work type's application instead of submitting it standalone.
- Incomplete engineering. Missing load calculations, anchor point details that don't match the equipment actually going up, or a site safety plan that's inconsistent with the filed drawings.
- Assuming an expired legacy permit is renewable. Treating a pre-November-2022 CD-5 as a quick renewal when it actually requires a full new DOB NOW filing.
- Missing the notification window. Installing or removing equipment without an active 24-48 hour notification on file, which creates real stop-work exposure, not just a paperwork problem.
None of these are DOB being slow. They're all avoidable with a filing that's built correctly the first time.
Getting a Filing Started Right
For outrigger-supported suspended scaffold, the engineering and the permit strategy are inseparable -- the load calculations and anchor point plan are what the filing is built around. Our rigging consultant and technical consulting service handles CD-5/SC filings directly, whether you're hiring Skybridge Access for the outrigger system itself or need the engineering and filing done independent of equipment.