Tag Archives: crane experts

Who Is Most at Risk When Working Around Cranes?

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Unfortunately, crane-related injuries often result in fatalities. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), an average of 42 deaths per year happen from crane-related accidents.

If you just started working with cranes, or you are looking to rent a crane from crane rentals, you must be wondering who is at the highest risk when working with cranes, right? Well, the truth is that anyone without proper training can be a victim.

Crane accidents, like other industrial occurrences, are often the result of operator error. Operator errors occur for a variety of causes, including inadequate training, distraction, exhaustion, and, in severe cases, drunkenness from drugs and alcohol.

This puts everyone on the site in significant danger.

Common risks

There are plenty of risks that come when working with cranes. The most common ones are:

Electrocution

All employees, including the operator, are accountable for identifying electrical dangers. Crane booms may come into touch with overhead electrical lines due to their height.

When this occurs, the electrical current can travel along the boom, into the material line, and through the tagline before passing directly through the worker securing the tagline.

One of the most critical safety precautions crane operators can take is to have local utility personnel mark off overhead lines with safety flags. This increases crane operators’ vision and hazard awareness.

Employers must also maintain a safe distance between the crane’s operational location and any electrical wires.

To be on the safe side, you should handle cranes with a minimum of 10 feet of clearance from electrical lines. This distance includes the fully extended load.

Falling loads

Most people envision crane accidents as a big cargo being dropped from the crane’s greatest height. This is a real threat associated with crane operations that all worksite managers must be aware of.

Falling loads occur for a variety of reasons. To begin, if the load is not properly fixed or fastened to the crane’s load line, it may slip.

If the load is not properly balanced, it can shift the machine’s center of gravity, resulting in tipping, which puts everyone on the site in danger.

Another potential risk arises when the principal load line or a tagline is disrupted. Without the entire support of an undamaged cable, the load becomes unstable, and one or more lines may finally give way and release the weight.

Two-blocking can occur when the operator does not allow for enough slack when extending the boom. This generates extra tension in a cable, causing the load to snap off.

Weather conditions are also an important consideration for operators. When cranes operate in severe environments, loads that are not properly fastened with taglines may become unstable owing to wind force and unrestrained swinging.

Finally, falling loads might occur when the load exceeds the crane’s design capability. Riggers must follow OSHA crane rules by first determining the load’s weight and capacity, then properly rigging and shackling it.

Operators are also responsible for maintaining smooth control of the weight to prevent it from falling.

To minimize the chances of this accident happening on your site, take your time and only hire experienced crane operators who know what they are doing.

Struck by accidents

The crane’s swinging movements increase the chance of being struck by an object. When the crane is raising or transferring a load, an unprepared worker could be injured by swinging pieces.

According to BLS data, 52% of the fatalities happen as a result of struck-by occurrences. Nearly 27% of these fatalities occur when a worker is struck by a load that fell from a moving crane.

To prevent this accident, be ultra-cautious of the operator you hire. You also should ensure that you train everyone to be more cautious when carrying out their activities beneath the crane.

Caught between hazards

Another construction incident occurs when workers are caught in or between dangers. In crane operations, caught-in/between accidents occur when a worker is physically pinned or compressed by the crane’s swinging superstructure or crushed by its moving elements.

Every piece of construction equipment, from a basic skid steer loader to a big industrial crane, contains moving elements, which produce pinch points.

The most critical thing a construction business can do to reduce crane-related accidents is to provide, teach, and enforce two-way radio communication between the operator and ground personnel.

Ground personnel are most vulnerable to being compressed in pinch points. Thus, they must be aware when the operator begins working the crane, particularly while adjusting its swinging sections or driving it forward or backward.

Transportation hazards

The frequently disregarded danger of working with cranes is the risk of transporting cranes to and from work sites.

These accidents are frequently referred to as the fifth danger in OSHA’s list of deadly four. Cranes are massive machines that must frequently be transported over large distances by industrial trucks.

Crane transportation is a long and difficult procedure with numerous potential hazards, including crashes, runovers, and brake failure.

It’s estimated that more than 13% of fatal crane incidents occur during transportation. Oversized loads, such as cranes, are risky and can kill personnel who are not properly trained or do not adhere to crane safety regulations for transportation.

Best practices when working with cranes

To reduce the chances of accidents happening, you should be cautious about how you handle the cranes. To be on the safe side, here are tips you should observe:

Properly train your employees

As an employer, you must give proper health and safety training to all of your employees so that they are competent at their employment.

By educating your personnel, you improve workplace safety, satisfaction, and revenues while reducing injuries, fatalities, accidents, and illness.

Ensure people working on the crane know where to stand

You should never stand underneath a crane or have a weight lifted over you. Your personnel must be aware of this and avoid wandering through any areas where cranes are overhead.

Parting shot

Everyone working with cranes is at risk of getting injured or hurt, so you should be aware of this when renting cranes from crane services VA.

Besides hiring a well maintained crane, also ensure that you work with experienced professionals. It also doesn’t hurt to train the people handling the crane to reduce the chances of accidents happening.

Tricks to Spend Less with Rented Cranes

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When hiring a crane for your project, you don’t want to spend too much on it. Profit margin drives decision-making in every aspect of construction, and even seemingly insignificant project modifications—like overspending or underperforming equipment—can have a big effect on the final financial result.

Due to this, getting every detail right is crucial.

When renting cranes from the crane rentals, you can avoid overspending by taking the time to plan and procure cranes, as well as by taking into account some basic site considerations.

The things you need to consider include:

Rent a small cane for small sites

A small crane with a remote control is the most economical option if you have a low-intensity site with a small workforce (12–15 workers, for example) and a required lift capacity of up to two tonnes, which would suggest you were building something with a timber frame or conventional houses using pallets of bricks, blocks, and mortar.

You will reduce the running costs greatly if you employ a remote-controlled model that only requires one person to load the hook and operate the crane controls.

Additionally, you can train multiple site workers to perform this task, allowing you to continue working without waiting for a single trained worker to return. This keeps the crane running and the project moving forward.

If, on the other side, you have a large site, you should get a tower crane. This crane is ideal when loads exceed two tones at thirty meters, and your project takes over twenty weeks.

Compared to mobile cranes with a comparable lifting capacity, saddle jib or flat-top cranes are more affordable to hire and come in various height and jib configurations. So, if your project fits into the crane, go for it. 

Hire cranes that are tall enough.

A crane’s height significantly influences costs. And it’s not just the cost of the rental. Also, the costs of keeping the crane running.

You need more concrete and steel for the base of a taller crane to be huge and strong enough to support the crane’s weight.

Additionally, taller cranes use more electricity and emit more carbon dioxide. Therefore, even a slight reduction in the height required for your lifting requirements might impact your overall expenditures.

To ensure that you don’t rent a crane that is too tall than you need, determine the highest point that the crane can reach. This dimension will assist you in figuring out the necessary crane height. As you decide on the right crane, consider any impediments or barriers that could limit the crane’s reach.

These include power lines, neighboring buildings, trees, and so on.

Position the materials appropriately.

The cranes’ location and other building site features will also impact your expenses. One well-known instance that frequently happens is when a materials shop is placed in the center of a courtyard or other open space on the property.

If you have multiple cranes, this implies that while one is loading, the other cannot reach the materials and must wait, wasting time in the process.

In addition to raising the chance of collisions, this configuration often makes site operations challenging and ineffective.

Optimizing the location of the materials store within the overall lifting plan will guarantee seamless operations, resulting in longer hook times and lower crane rental expenses.

For a great experience, provide open, unobstructed access to these locations.

You also should ensure the site has well-built walkways and access roads so the cranes can navigate it. These paths should be clear of obstructions and large enough to fit both cranes.

As a rule of thumb, have a specific location for storing the materials. Ensure that both cranes can easily access this area. This area should be placed strategically to reduce the distance that cranes must go to pick up items.

Ensure the crane has enough power.

You will need three-phase power if you install lift shafts—most tall structures do. The power should be installed as soon as possible to use the tower crane’s primary power during construction.

You should ensure that you have enough power before you bring on the crane because doing so is far less expensive than using a generator, even with the additional rental fees, fuel tank, and fuel.

You can cut the costs throughout a building project with a few easy adjustments, including one-time hire fees and continuous operating costs.

Work with the right team.

Finally, you should ensure that you have the right team. This calls for you to ensure that everyone, from the crane operator to the riggers, is experienced and knows what they are doing.

Many people will argue that you will end up spending more money than you need when hiring expert riggers, but this isn’t the case.

When you hire experts, as much as they will be a little expensive to hire at first, they will save you a lot of money in the long run.

When you hire inexperienced contractors, as much as they will be cheap, they might cost you too much money. This is because they will do substandard work, and you will have to redo it, which will likely be too expensive.

There is also the risk of the crane breaking down or even getting damaged due to being handled by inexperienced technicians.

As much as you want to spend less on your project, take time and find experienced professionals. Thankfully, most crane service DC providers have their team that they work with; hence, you don’t need to worry about finding the right team to work with.

How Do You Get The Most From Your Rented Crane?

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When you rent a crane from crane rentals, you want to get the best from it, right? Well, there are plenty of ways on how to go about it, with the common ones being:

Rent from a reputable rental company

Most people will rent a crane from the first rental company they come across—this is wrong. Like in other fields, some companies will give you a great experience while others will be hell to work with.

You want to work with a company that is fun and knows what they are doing. The company should have helpful and charismatic staff that will hold your hand and guide you to renting the right crane for your project, even if it’s your first time doing it.

The company should also have many, properly maintained cranes. The last thing you want is renting a crane, and it breaks down in the middle of the project, and you end up wasting a lot of time and money.

You also don’t want to work with a company that doesn’t have many cranes that you can replace, should the crane you are using break down.

To ensure that you are working with the right rental company, take your time. Visit as many companies as possible and see what they offer. This calls for you to start your crane-hunting journey early enough.

Be on the lookout for hidden fees.

Different companies have different charges for their cranes. Besides the price of the crane, some companies will have additional fees such as registration fees, operator fees, transport fees, and many others.

While these fees might seem little, they can quickly add up. To avoid surprises, always ask about them before you start working with a given company.

Book at the right time

As mentioned, you need to start your search for cranes as early as possible. Most people start their search as early as three months, and this is good as you have enough time to visit many rental companies.

While this is the case, you shouldn’t book the crane as chances are you might not be ready for it by the time the three months lapse.

Another thing might also come up, and you are unable to use the crane at that time.

The same way you shouldn’t rent the crane too early is the same way you shouldn’t rent it too late.

Most people renting cranes for the first time have the impression that they will wait a day or two to the project date to rent the crane. As you can guess, this isn’t wise as chances are you don’t get the crane you want.

There is also a high likelihood of paying extremely high fees as you often pick the first crane you come across.

There is no right or wrong time to rent the crane—you only need to research and find the right time that works for you.

If you aren’t sure whether you should proceed with placing your order, get the input of a professional.

Ensure that your employees have the necessary training

The last thing you want in your worksite is accidents. And how do you prevent this from happening? By properly training your employees.

Cranes are complex, and they come with plenty of hazards everyone on the site should be aware of. For example, the crane can tip over, the load might fall from the crane, and plenty of other things.

You should ensure that none of your employees gets on the worksite without the necessary training. Thankfully, there are plenty of online and offline resources you can use for this. If you have the budget, you can hire an independent company to handle the trainings for you.

To have an easier time, work with experienced professionals and, even with those, take them for a refresher course to be abreast with the latest crane operating procedures.

Regularly inspect the cranes.

You can rent the best crane from crane services VA but fail to get a great experience from it simply because you don’t keep it in top shape. Besides inspecting the crane at the time of hiring, inspect it when it reaches the worksite. You also should inspect it before you lift or carry any load.

Crane Rentals: Man Lift Safety Tips

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Aerial lifts are one of the lifting machines you can rent from crane rentals. These lifts make work easier due to their flexibility and mobility. Unfortunately, like other cranes in the industry, they carry their fair share of risks.

If you are going to use an aerial lift, here are some of the hazards you should watch out for and tips on how to avoid them:

Electric shock

Electric shock occurs when you work close to the power lines. Even when you aren’t on the crane, shock can transfer through the machine if it’s not electrically insulated—which is the case with most cranes.

To protect yourself, avoid getting too close to the electrical wires when working. For best results, maintain at least 10 feet of clearance from the power lines at all times. Experts advise you to treat wires, power lines, and conductors as if they are energized.

Tip-overs

It goes without saying that lifts and cranes become less stable as height increases. Thankfully, you can reduce the chances of tipping over by keeping your eye out for holes, debris, inclines, and uneven terrain.

You should note that uneven ground can affect your lift even when you aren’t moving, so set the brakes and use wheel chocks when you are on an incline.

When operating your boom lift at high wind speeds, follow the manufacturer instructions. To be safe, don’t get on the lift if the winds are more than 28 miles per hour.

Falls or ejections from the basket

You or your fellow worker can fall from the lift due to plenty of reasons. To ensure this doesn’t happen, use a body harness with a tie-off attached to the tie-off points on the platform or basket and not a nearby structure.

Note the points with decals or stickers. You should aim to stay tied-off while raising or lowering the machine and moving the lift to another location.

The collapse of the lift

If using an old machine or you didn’t properly assemble the machine, it’s not uncommon for it to collapse from its height. It’s also common for the lift to collapse due to overloading.

The cool thing it’s possible to prevent this from happening. When renting the lift, take the time to go through its documents and know how old it is. Also, inspect the maintenance records and ensure the rental company takes good care of the machine.

To avoid the collapse of the machine due to overloading, ensure you only load the necessary weight. When calculating the weight you are looking to load on the machine, remember to include the weight of your tools, your weight, and the weight of the machine.

Objects falling from the lift

Materials and tools can fall from the aerial lift as you are working, which puts you or your other workers at the risk of getting hurt. To reduce the chances of accidents or even deaths from occurring, ensure no one is under the boom when working.

Also, ensure no one stands directly under the boom basket for any reason.

Boom lift safety tips

When lifting people, ensure that all occupants are wearing and using approved safety belts. They also should wear a hard hat and other protective clothing or equipment.

If you need to move from one platform to the next, take ultra caution when attaching the safety belt. For safety reasons, attach the belt as soon as you are on the new platform. You should have specially trained personnel to provide operator support.

Like any other crane, ensure the lift is operated by an experienced and certified professional. Thankfully, most crane services VA providers will rent the crane together with the operator, so you don’t have to go through the trouble of finding an operator after renting.

As mentioned above, you should always rent a high quality and properly maintained lift. As a rule of thumb, don’t operate the lift if it doesn’t have a warning or caution decals. Also, don’t rent a crane without legible placards.

While the lift might seem harmless, it’s hazardous so ensure that only a certified operator handles it. You don’t want someone else playing with it and end up damaging it or, worse, harming or even killing someone.

Looking To Hire A Crane From Crane Services Providers? Consider These Tips

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You need a crane to move heavy and gigantic objects in your work site. When having a one-off project, you shouldn’t stress yourself over buying a crane—you should rent one from your local crane services providers.

You don’t want a crane that keeps on breaking down at the site, do you? Then you should rent a high-quality machine. How do you do it? By following these tips:

Know what you want

Can you hire a crane you don’t know what it’s for? Of course not. For you to hire the right crane for your project, you need to understand why you are hiring it in the first place. Do you want it to carry stones? Lift construction materials? What do you want it to do?

The first step to renting the right machine is understanding your environment. Is the area slant? Are there holes? What is the type of terrain? Is it accessible?

It’s after you have considered these things that you will be able to pick the right machine for your needs.

Hire from the right company

The crane you hire is as good as the company you hire from. A good rule of thumb is to rent from a reputable company with a proven record of having high-quality machines. The company should also have many cranes.

Remember, just because a crane is appropriately maintained doesn’t mean it can’t break down. When you work with a company with only one crane and it breaks down, you have to hire from another company, which will be expensive as you will pay twice.

To avoid this, work with a company with a variety of cranes. This way, you are sure even if the crane you are renting develops problems, you will easily replace it without incurring additional loss on your part.

Carefully inspect the crane

Most of the crane rental companies are online, and when you visit their sites, you will see the cranes they stock. Should you order the cranes online? You can go ahead and do it, but first inspect the cranes in person.

If you have bought something online, you will agree that the pictures aren’t always identical to the real thing, so don’t place an order before you see the crane.

This calls for you to visit the rental company offices and carefully go through the cranes. A rental company worth its salt will have a wide variety of cranes ranging from rough terrain to side-lift cranes.

During the inspection, pay attention to maintenance records. When was the crane maintained? Is it currently in good condition? Which company maintains the cranes? And any other details that will help you know more about the current condition of the machine.

The main reason for inspecting the crane before hiring is because you don’t want to order a machine in a horrible condition that won’t perform your intended tasks.

If you have hired cranes in the past, you can quickly tell whether the crane is properly maintained, but if this is your first time, ask an experienced crane operator to help you with the inspection.

Hire an experienced crane operator

As mentioned above, when renting the crane for the first time, you shouldn’t do it alone—ask a crane operator to help you out. The operator will not only help you with finding the right crane, he/she will also help you with safely operating the machine at the worksite.

Most people hire their friends or relatives with basic crane knowledge as their crane operators. Don’t do this. Remember that a crane is a complex machine that should only be handled by a certified professional.

For peace of mind and to minimize accidents at the worksite, only work with a professional with the right certification. While they will be a little bit expensive, the extra cost is worth it.

In most cases, you don’t even have to pay for their services as they come as a package from the crane hire DC companies.

Parting shot

These are four of the ways in which you can ensure you rent a crane that is right for your project. By following these ways, you not only reduce the chances of accidents happening, but it also saves you time and money.

What You Need To Know When Undertaking Crane Rigging

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When you are undertaking crane rigging, you need to do a number of things for you to have a great and successful operation. Some of the things you need to do include:

Observe the PPE requirements

PPE requires that you use the right protection devices when you are undertaking rigging. You need to wear ear protection, gloves, and hearing protection. When you are going to lift a load for more than 5 feet, you should wear head protection. This calls for you to wear a hard hat.

You should note that all the people on the site should wear protection. This is because no one is exempted from an accident in the event it comes about.

Undertake pre-operational checks

Many people inspect cranes when they are renting them then forget about it. Don’t do this. Before you undertake any form of lifting, you should inspect the crane and identify any problems that might be there. If they are present, get rid of them.

You also need to undertake a visual inspection of the hooks, chain, wire rope, or the synthetic straps you might be using in your project. When you are undertaking the inspection, you should look out for broken wires and damage on the chains. The damage can be in the form of nicks, stretch, twists, kinks, and wear.

Are you using hooks? You should look out for latches on them. If they are damaged, you are better off replacing them.

You also should check whether the hoist is properly reeved. Ensure that the warning and safety labels are present and legible. The hoist shouldn’t have any signs of oil leakage.

After the inspection, undertake a test run of the hoist without the load. You should run the hoist all the way up and down. If you experience any unusual sounds, have an expert identify where they are coming from and fix them.

When running the hoist, pay attention to the stopping positions. A properly functioning unit shouldn’t have any excessive drift.

Properly run the crane

Not everyone can operate the crane; therefore, you should ensure that you hire an expert who is experienced enough to run the machine.

Two of the major causes of accidents when using cranes are: overloading the machine and having poor rigging practices.

You should never overload the machine. You can do this by ensuring that you don’t lift any weight that you are uncertain about. If you aren’t sure of the weight of the load you are looking to lift, check the manufacturer’s catalog.

If there is no way in which you can determine the weight, consider calculating it. You can consult a rigging handbook or ask an engineer to help you with the calculations.

Observe rigging safety

Anything can go wrong when you are undertaking rigging; therefore, you should be cautious when doing it. As a rule of thumb, you should observe safe rigging practices. These practices include:

When you are rigging, always ensure that the load hook and upper suspension form a straight line.

The chain or the body of the hoist should never get into contact with the load. This is to avoid damaging the load or machine.

When you are rigging around loads, always use a sling or lifting device. You also should use engineered lift points for attachment.

For you to avoid accidents, avoid lifting loads over people. If you are working during the lift, you should never work under suspended loads. This is because the loads can easily fall, hurting you in the process.

If you have visited rigging sites, you must have come across some operators carrying people in their cranes. Don’t do this as you risk hurting the people that you are carrying.

When you are visiting the bathroom or leaving the hoist unattended, land any attached loads. You don’t want to find someone hurt under the machine, do you?

At the end of the working day, crane services VA professionals place the hoist or hook back in place. This is to prevent its interference with the movement of people and materials. If possible, place the crane at a safe area where it doesn’t get in the way.