OSHA Safety Tips For Suspended Loads
Handling suspended loads with great care is crucial due to the potential for accidents and injuries. Proper training, equipment inspection, and adherence to safety regulations are essential to ensure the safe lifting, movement, and placement of suspended loads in the workplace.
Let’s take a closer look at what qualifies as a suspended load and the practical steps you can take when around them to help prevent injury.
What Are Suspended Loads?
A suspended load refers to any load that is hanging or supported from above. These types of loads are not resting on a solid surface but are instead elevated or suspended in the air with some kind of rigging. Suspended loads are commonly encountered in various industries, including construction, manufacturing, shipping, and material handling.
The following types of equipment are responsible for many suspended loads:
- Forklifts
- Hoists
- Wheel Loaders
- Boom or Jib Cranes
The most significant danger is that if something goes wrong, the lifted items will fall as dangerous projectiles, causing substantial crushing or piercing damage.
For this reason, OSHA defines a fall zone as “the area including, but not limited to, the area directly beneath the load in which it is reasonably foreseeable that partially or completely suspended materials could fall in the event of an accident.” A suspended load, whether stationary or in motion, could fall in any direction at any time.
Working Around Suspended Load Fall Zone
The simplest way to follow OSHA safety standards about suspended loads is to ensure that no one is ever within the fall zone unless absolutely necessary to complete a lift safely. Such exceptions include riggers who help hook and unhook loads, spotters who may help guide a lift, or other workers who may be involved in structural attachment.
To help maintain the fall zone, implement the following safety procedures:
- Avoid moving a suspended load over individuals
- Clearly mark the fall zone for workers or any public
- Be prepared to clear a path and move the fall zone if horizontal travel is required
- Remember that the fall zone radius will increase as loads are lifted higher
Like any safety around the job site, it begins and ends with proper communication. Any workers near a crane on the site should be informed when a lift is occurring so they can stay out of harm’s way. All workers need to be versed in proper OSHA hand signals to ensure there is no confusion while the machinery is in operation.
Overhead Safety Concerns
While keeping the fall zone clear is an essential safety step, another aspect of safety outlined by OSHA is to watch out for overhead hazards. It is important to note all of the dangers that are present on a worksite, and obstacles like high-voltage lines or other structural poles and wires are no exception.
The minimum clearance for any power line is ten feet, but the higher the voltage, the greater the clearance required. When possible, it is best to set cranes where they have no possibility, even when fully extended, of coming into contact with the power line. For most construction sites, that ideal may be impossible. Safe operation then relies on your operating personnel.
This recommendation can also apply to any non-powered obstacles as well. Reducing the number of close obstacles your crew has to operate around can help prevent any unexpected load shifts or accidental contact that can cause movement or rigging failures.
Management should perform daily risk and site hazard analyses to make sure that cranes are being operated within OSHA regulations. It is always better to treat every power line as if it is fully powered and uninsulated.
Weather Safety
If you are using suspended loads in an outdoor environment, work is often a year-round affair, meaning crews and machines are often required to work through less-than-ideal conditions. Severe storms, winds, or rain can often pop up with little notice throughout the year, exponentially increasing the risk of damage or injury on work sites.
Make sure you know how to mitigate inclement weather risks on non-ideal days and when it is time to call off any site work due to weather.
Parker’s Crane Service
No matter the type of crane you operate or where you use it, the best tools for running a crane safely are experience, communication, and proper training of the personnel on-site.
With over 40 years of moving and using cranes, Parker’s Crane Service has the expertise you need for safe, reliable crane operations, no matter the job site or weather.
We pride ourselves on safety and our Zero Accident Philosophy and conduct many detailed safety measures when performing a job to ensure that no project carries unnecessary risk. We perform the following for every single job we take:
- Pre-Lift Job Assessments
- Daily Risk Assessments
- On-Site Hazard Analysis
- Routine Management Audits
With a fleet of well-maintained hydraulic truck cranes, we offer the best equipment and can help with site installation, maintenance, and operation. Our crew is OSHA and MSHA-compliant to ensure your site and crew safety.
Parker's Crane provides quality crane rental, rigging, and heavy hauling services throughout the Carolinas and the East Coast. Contact us if you would like to discuss your needs and whether or not our services and equipment will work for your construction project. We provide free on-site quotes and evaluations.