Meet the Father and Son Keeping Bamboo Scaffolding Safe

A version of this story appears in The Bamboo Metropolis, the third volume of our Zolima Culture Guide. Pledge your support for our Kickstarter campaign and earn exclusive early bird deals! Sign up now at our Kickstarter page.

At 9am, So Chi-fai and Timmy So are driving their specially designed truck, neatly packed with bamboo poles of varying lengths, tools and safety equipment, to a scaffolding removal job in Yuen Long. 

Wearing white helmets and sunglasses, the father-and-son duo quickly split the work. Secured in a harness, Timmy climbs out to remove the six-by-six-metre truss-out scaffold on the second floor façade of a house. After untying the nylon strips, he passes the bamboo poles up to his father on the rooftop, who hands down tools as needed. In two hours, the job is done and the site left as it was. 

The So family is one of many father-son partnerships in bamboo scaffolding, a trade long shaped by blood ties and personal networks that still make up about half the industry. Now 66, So Chi-fai first stepped into the trade at nine, becoming a scaffolding at 19 before later founding Chi Fai Scaffolding Works. 

Following in his father’s footsteps, Timmy spent his secondary school summers assisting with groundwork, such as transporting materials to residential buildings. “The company was very busy at the time, and maybe they also worried I’d pick up bad habits if I did nothing,” the 40-year-old recalls with a laugh, as his father nods beside him.

Although a third-generation member of a scaffolding family, Timmy stepped away from the trade after graduation and entered the catering industry. It was news surrounding bamboo scaffolding safety and a rise in workplace accidents that later prompted him to become a scaffolder in his late 20s. 

The (nylon) ties that bind

Learning the craft from his father also brought them closer. “We didn’t spend much time together when I was a kid because he was always working. When he came home, he was often stressed, so we weren’t very close. It was only after I became a scaffolder that I began to understand him and how hard this job is,” says Timmy.

One of his most memorable jobs was building scaffolding to repair the clock tower in Tsim Sha Tsui. Standing 44 metres tall, it is all that remains of the Kowloon-Canton Railway Terminus, which was demolished in 1978 to make way for the Hong Kong Cultural Centre. The job required extra care as no supports were allowed to be fixed onto the building’s historic structure.

“The pier was very windy and scaffolding would wobble; I almost felt like being on a boat,” says Timmy. “We call it wan4 paang4 long (暈棚浪),” adds his father, So Chi-fai — “scaffolding sickness.”

“People down there would say hi to us. It felt like we were part of the sightseeing, which was quite pleasing,” Timmy recalls.                                                                                              

While the job demands flexibility and courage in navigating changing, high-risk conditions, the father-and-son duo say it is important “not to be too bold.” For them, safety always comes first.

When Timmy entered the industry, he noticed that many veteran sifus, or masters, were not familiar with safety gear such as harnesses — including his father. “These things didn’t exist 20 years ago,” says Timmy. “Some things like sunglasses could sometimes be an obstacle when we’re working. Before, scaffolders relied purely on physical strength, but today we also need to make use of different tools.” 

Whenever they are on site together, Timmy makes sure his father puts on his harness before climbing out. It has now become routine. “I’m used to being scolded by him. I’ve been tamed. I have no temper now,” says So Chi-fai, laughing.

To safeguard the working conditions, their company also invests money on labour insurance and training workers with safety practice. It is among the 60 truss-out scaffolding “star enterprises” recognised by the Occupational Safety and Health Council.

The future of bamboo scaffolding

As vice officer of the Hong Kong Construction Sub-Contractors Association, Timmy also gives talks and runs outreach to raise awareness of industry safety. Not for fame or money, these advocacy work are voluntary, driven by a desire to improve the trade. 

That’s especially true after the horrific Tai Po fire in November 2025. When a blaze quickly engulfed seven towers of Wang Fuk Court, which were undergoing renovations, early media reports highlighted the fact that the estate’s eight tower blocks were wrapped in bamboo scaffolding. Though it was later determined that scaffolding was not to blame, the disaster threw the entire future of the trade into doubt.

Timmy and his father have doubled down on keeping the trade alive — and safe. “I can’t say bamboo scaffolding is the best method for the future,” says Timmy. “After all, working at height carries higher risks, which is why we need stronger safety measures. We are open to other methods if they are safe to use, but until there is a better alternative, we should do our part and help the industry grow.” 

A version of this story will appear in The Bamboo Metropolis, the third volume of our Zolima Culture Guide.
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