Whether you have a brand new project that requires you to start from scratch or you are undertaking a renovation, you need a crane. If you don’t have one, you need to hire the crane from your local crane rentals. Cranes make it easy to transport large, heavy, and unwieldy materials.
For you to have a great time with the rented crane you need to consider a number of tips:
Understand your project requirements
What does your project entail? You need to know the ins and outs of it. This is to know the right type of crane you should hire. You need to know the nature of your terrain, the weather conditions, the weight of the materials, the height of the structure, among many other things.
If renting the crane for the first time, work with a professional who will guide you on the right crane to rent.
Work with the right company
You might be having all the details of your site but you will have a bad experience if you work with the wrong crane company. There are many crane rental companies, but no two are similar.
A good company should have high quality, properly maintained cranes. This way you are sure that the cranes won’t develop problems on the site.
It’s also wise to work with a company with many cranes. A company with one crane ends up being too expensive. In the event the one crane breaks down, you have to hire another from a different company, which leads to you paying double price for the crane.
When you work with a company with many cranes, you are sure that the company will replace the faulty crane with a new one in the event the one you are using breaks down.
Have the necessary permits
For you to legally use the crane in your project, you should have the necessary permits. If having your project in an urban area and you are using a large crane, you may have to block a portion of the road.
If you don’t have the necessary permits the city may temporarily shut down your project, which will be an inconvenience for you.
Before you start working, visit your local city offices and understand the permits that you need. You should note that sometimes it’s the responsibility of the crane company to get the permits. To cut your costs, first research who is responsible for the permits.
Organize your team and site
Don’t bring the crane before the site is ready. This is because you will end up wasting a lot of time and money. Most of the rental companies rent the machines by the hour. This means that if you don’t prepare the site early enough, you will be paying a rental fee while the crane is sitting on the trailer.
Before you go to the rental companies, ensure that the site is clear of any obstructions. Are there long trees in the area? Get rid of them before you begin your work.
Just as you should prepare the site, you also should prepare your team. For the rigging process to be a success you need to have a rigging team. Choose a team of experienced individuals to help you with the work.
If they haven’t been engaged in a similar project before, have them trained first. By the time you are getting the crane, everyone should know what the project entails, the responsibility of the team members, and how to avoid accidents from coming about.
Move the crane early
Unless you are hiring a mobile crane, you have to hire heavy machinery movers to help you move the crane. To avoid wasting hours in traffic, plan to move early in the morning before there are many cars on the road.
In addition to this saving you time, it also increases the safety issue as you have few things to deal with at that time.
Schedule lifting during the standard working hours
Unless you have to absolutely do it, you should undertake your lifting during the normal working hours. This is important if you have to hire a crane operator. By doing the lifting outside of this time, you will have to pay an extra fee which makes the crane services VA too expensive.