Lifting equipment such as cranes or slings must be supervised by a qualified person who follows the safety protocol required for use. Indeed, safety is important as a number of people have died or been seriously injured in mobile or tower crane mishaps. So, you need to work with a company that provides cranes and is also focused on safety.
Cranes Must Be Safety-Tested
Therefore, cranes must be sufficiently strong and tested and pass all prerequisite inspections or evaluations. In addition, crane operators must be trained in the use of heavy equipment and possess a background that demonstrates this fact.
The safe use of a crane involves four major criteria:
- The planning for a lifting operation
- Safe work systems
- Overseeing lifting
- A complete examination of the equipment
Two Major Lifting Hazards
Safety is emphasised as mobile or tower cranes are used a great deal at construction sites and can trigger two main types of dangers. These hazards include the collapse of a crane or the falling of a load.
During a collapse, the potential exists for more than one fatal injury both on and off the construction site. If a load drops, a major injury or death may result. Other accidents include the collision of cranes or cranes coming into contact with conductors overhead. In some instances, people are struck by a moving load.
The crane hire cost in Huddersfield as well as the responsibility for supervising and performing a crane lifting operation falls on the client. Otherwise, the responsibilities are assumed by the hire company under a “contract lift.” Because some of the people who hire cranes do not typically possess the background for safety planning and usage, they need to resort to a contract lift.
Regardless of who oversees the task, any lifting should be performed safely by taking into account the associated risks. Therefore, a person who plans the lift needs to possess the theoretical and practical knowledge of how to facilitate this type of operation.
Identifying the Risks
Any plan for lifting needs to review the identified risks. Identification is made by a risk assessment. Therefore, any lifting plan should guarantee that the equipment being used is safe and operational. A method of statement is normally written to ensure that a safe system of work is established for a lift.
The “key ingredients” in this statement include the following:
- Planning: Preparing a site and erecting and dismantling a crane
- Selection: Choosing a crane for a project
- Maintenance and Examination: Assessing and repairing the crane as required
- Personnel: Providing workers who are competent and trained
- Supervision: Making sure that the crane lift is managed by a competent supervisor
- Paperwork Review: Examining reports and documents concerning a lifting operation
- Securing the Safety of Non-Personnel: Making sure that the persons who are not part of the lifting operation remain safe
- Preventing Unauthorised Use: Making sure that the crane is only operated by authorised personnel
Any supervision should be performed following the guidelines of the method statement. As you can see, all the listed items entail a good deal of thought. That is why you need to work with a crane hire company that supports this type of work protocol.