5 Key Questions for Developing a Sound Lift Plan
Original Post: Travelers.com
Crane lifts can be one of the most dangerous tasks happening on the construction job site. In best practices, it can also be one of the safest. To begin, it all starts with a solid lift plan. Here are a few key questions you can ask yourself to get started preparing a crane lift plan.
1. What do you expect to happen?
In your mind how do you see the lift happening? Consider which direction the crane might swing and move as the lift is made and remember to plan your access route in and out. Visualizing the lift before it even happens can really put you ahead of the game.
2. What might go wrong or interfere with the crane lift?
An infinite amount of things can go wrong during a crane lift. If you can think ahead it is entirely possible to prevent a lot of them. Things to keep in mind when planning a crane lift include the weather, power lines or ground conditions. Will there be excessive wind or lightning, and who will be responsible for monitoring those conditions? Are power lines near the work area and what is the known voltage? Does the ground need soil testing and are there any buried utilities?
All of these topics have been covered by Sims Crane on our YouTube Channel.
3. What is the likelihood that something might go wrong?
This question ties with the second question. Lack of experience or training will increase the likelihood of something going wrong. Always be sure all of your crew members on the job have the proper certification to perform the tasks they are about to do. It is also very important to share any lift planning, critical tasks and job hazard analysis with every member of the work crew.
4. What are the consequences if something goes wrong?
Always be aware of the consequences if something does go wrong. OSHA fines these days are only getting bigger and that is something you don’t want added to the bill. The most important part of the lift plan is the safety of all the men and women around the job site. Their lives come first. The main task at hand every day is that everyone gets to go home safely.
5. Does everything in your lift plan seem solid?
This question is made to recap everything you have gone over to be sure you will have a solid lift plan. This could possibly be the most important question because it gives you the chance to go back and make sure you did everything correctly. Always be sure to confirm measurements and calculations more than once; trust and verify the information provided by others by measuring again for yourself.
No matter the difficulty or type of crane lift, always keep these questions in mind. If you can learn how to apply these questions and ask the right questions to identify new hazards, you will always maintain a safe job site.
