The Top Five Ways to Reduce Crane-Related Accidents

By Kirk Ward

Most accidents don't just happen. They are often the result of a string of unfortunate events, including slipups, oversight, mechanical failure, and yes, even bad luck. The only way to eliminate crane-related accidents, therefore, is to foresee the many safety considerations of every lift in a planned and thoughtful way.

Consider this scenario.

A young crane operator is helping to set steel. It's the day before a holiday. Everyone wants to get the day's work done quickly. Taking advantage of the crane operator's youth and relative inexperience, the tradesmen working on the project pressure him to work faster. With no clear authority on the job site, he caves in to their demands.

As an inexperienced operator, he relies on the crane's computer to determine such critical things as the load weight and radius. Complicating matters, the lift is to be landed in an area beyond his view. He must rely on radio communications to control the placement of the load. This day, however, the signals are relayed by an unqualified signalperson.

The operator begins working at a faster pace, "flying" increasingly heavier loads. He is instructed to place the loads further and further out on the structure, increasing the crane's working radius while decreasing its lifting capacity. Suddenly the load moment indicator warns of a potential overload condition. The operator, against his own better judgment but feeling committed to continue, overrides the computer. As he "booms out" to the landing area, the crane becomes unstable and tips forward, dropping the steel and killing a nearby ironworker.

The costs of accidents like this—in human life and the consequences to the companies involved—can be great. Accidents can be prevented if everyone, from site manager and lift planner to rigger, signalperson, workers onsite, and crane operator, makes safety both their responsibility and a routine part of their job.

Construction Industry Safety

Improved crane technology has a positive impact on both productivity and profits. Yet safety issues always exist both for the operators of the equipment and for workers in the vicinity. Safety planning should be an integral part of every lift, including rigorous training and extensive workplace precautions.

On most sites I tour, I see safety policy enforcement. But understanding the causes of accidents can help operators and site managers pay special attention to key areas of concern.

Accident Causes and Statistics

1. Contact with power lines
2. Overturns
3. Falls
4. Mechanical failures

In fact, the use of cranes during lifting operations caused 8 percent of all fatal construction events from 1991 to 2002 (Source: OSHA).

Beyond the sobering statistics on accidental deaths, there are the "routine" crane accidents resulting in injuries and damage to equipment and property. These cause missed work days, rising insurance rates, OSHA fines, litigation costs, lost business opportunities, and more. A 3-year study completed by OHSA in California (CalOSHA) in 1997 indicated that the majority of crane accidents are non-fatal, and the majority of the injured are not crane operators but other workers, e.g., ironworkers, riggers, carpenters, etc.

Although the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) keeps statistics on fatal incidents, the number of non-fatal crane accidents is underreported. As someone involved in the construction industry for 20 years, I would say that hundreds of non-fatal but often serious crane incidents occur annually, with most going unreported/unrecorded with any governmental agency. Nevertheless, the pain and suffering the injured individuals encounter is real. The accident investigation or legal proceedings that follow can tie up the contractor, the crane company, and the building owner sometimes for years.

The Top Five Essentials for Reducing Crane Accidents

1. Assess all construction sites for the potential for a crane incident to occur.
   Ensure that the site is adequately prepared for lifting operations and that hazards have been identified (proper soil preparation, adequate room to assemble/disassemble the crane, assessment of danger from power lines, underground pipelines, etc.).
2. Establish a crane safety plan for each lift.
   Assign responsibility to ensure the safety plan is followed. Ensure that the crane has the correct capacity for the job and that equipment has been rigorously maintained and inspected according to manufacturers' specifications.
3. Assign a competent person to oversee crane operations, with authority to stop unsafe operations.
   As defined by OSHA, a competent person, through training, qualification, and experience, has knowledge of applicable standards, is capable of identifying workplace hazards relating to the specific operation, is designated by the employer, and has authority to take appropriate actions.
4. Utilize qualified operators, signalpersons, and riggers.
   The crane operator must be capable of running the crane and be competent with load charts, pre-inspection, and set-up. The load must be properly rigged and inspected before the lift. The proper signaling method (i.e., hand, radio, etc.), must be established and the signalperson capable of performing this function properly.
5. Train ancillary workers in safe crane operation.
   All personnel involved with or in the vicinity of the lift must be adequately trained in lifting operations. Everyone involved in maintaining, repairing, and assembling the crane should have received the necessary training and be competent to perform these tasks.

The Team Approach to Safety

Finally, make sure you choose a crane rental company that not only offers a broad range of cranes, but also has the depth of expertise to recommend the correct type and capacity of crane for your job. Even better is a company that controls the maintenance of its fleet to provide technically superior, safe equipment—and has a strong commitment to ensuring the safety of its own personnel, its customers, and that of the public.

Reducing crane-related accidents begins with a team approach: you and your crane company. Always remember the industry adage that "There is no job so important or any deadline so urgent that we cannot take the time to work safely."