Lifting plan

If you’re taking charge of lifting operations, you need to draw up a written plan which identifies how the activity is going to be completed safety. This can be achieved by completing our lifting plan.   

Potentially risky

Cranes do a good job at making otherwise impossible jobs relatively easy, but they also introduce a risk by providing a whole host of opportunities for accidents. Many of these are potentially lethal, e.g. the crane falling over or the load being dropped. Making sure you have a competent crane driver might seem to solve the problem, but unfortunately it’s a bit more complicated than that.

If you choose to hire a crane with a driver from a hire company, you may unwittingly take on a great deal of responsibility for the safe execution of the lifting operation. You will retain all the management responsibilities for the job, including the requirement to produce a comprehensive risk assessment and Lifting Plan. This is where our new document comes in to its own.

What to consider?

To ensure all potential hazards are managed, we’ve detailed some of the most common ones: These include: (1) cultural, communication and language difficulties; (2) environmental conditions including weather, wind speed and permissible limits; (3) suitability and condition of lifting equipment to be used; (4) weight, size, shape and centre of gravity of the load; (5) experience and competence of personnel involved; (6) lighting in the pick up and lay down areas; (7) initial and final load positions and how it will get there; (8) number and duration of lifts; and (9) overturning, load integrity and the need for tag lines.