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. . . . . . . . Approved by Jean Myers
Revised 08/0927.1 Policy
27.2 Scope
27.3 LBNL Support Organizations
27.4 Introduction
27.5 Training, Certification, and Approval Requirements for Crane and Hoist Operators27.5.1 Cranes and Hoists – 2 Tons or Less
27.5.2 Cranes and Hoists – Greater Than 2 Tons
27.5.3 Mobile Cranes
27.5.4 Cab-Operated Cranes27.6 Crane Manager
27.7 General Requirements for Crane Operations27.7.1 Securing Cranes
27.7.2 Daily Inspection
27.7.3 Personal Protective Equipment
27.7.4 Rigging
27.7.5 Restricted Lifts27.7.6 Suspended Tools
27.7.7 Component Failure or Unintended Movement27.8 High-Consequence/High-Value Lifts and Moves
27.8.1 High-Consequence/High-Value Lift/Move Requirements
27.8.2 Approval of and Changes to High-Consequence/High-Value Lift Procedures
27.8.3 Personnel Participating in High-Consequence/High-Value Lifts27.9 Procurement and Maintenance of Cranes and Hoisting and Rigging Equipment
27.10 Lifting Fixtures27.11 Design of Lifting Fixtures
27.12 Single-Bolt Pickup Devices
27.13 Responsible Parties27.13.1 Supervisors
27.13.2 Employees
27.13.3 Mechanical Engineering Designee
27.13.4 Responsible Designer
27.13.5 Customer Management
27.13.6 Facilities Division Structural Engineering Group Designee
27.13.7 Facilities Division Rigging Supervisor
27.13.8 Facilities Division Crane and Elevator Office
27.13.9 EH&S Division Designee27.14 Standards
27.15 Related LBNL/PUB-3000 Chapters
27.16 References
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The purpose of the Cranes, Hoisting, and Rigging Program at Berkeley Lab is to assure that all hoisting and rigging is performed safely and in conformance with all applicable standards, as well as to minimize the risk of damage to equipment and property.
This policy applies to all Laboratory employees, casual and participating visitors, guests, and service contractors operating or working with cranes at Berkeley Lab. Lifting and moving loads with forklifts is covered in Chapter 28 of PUB-3000. Construction operations involving cranes are covered in Chapter 10 (Construction Safety) of PUB-3000.
Heavy material handling requiring the use of cranes or hoists is a potentially hazardous activity. To assure the safety of such operations, the Laboratory requires stringent controls for the use of such equipment, including below-the-hook components, and the procurement, maintenance, and inspection of all such equipment is strictly controlled.
The operation of cranes and hoists is restricted to trained personnel who
have completed LBNL required training, and who have been certified in accordance
with the requirements of this chapter. This includes the operation
of cranes without a load for any reason.
In addition, all crane use must be approved by the crane manager for that
particular crane. The crane manager is a qualified crane operator who
has been designated as the individual responsible for the safe operation
of a specific crane. Before operating a crane in an area for the first
time or in a new application, discuss the proposed crane use with the crane
manager and obtain approval. The crane manager will verify that the
operator is familiar with the controls for that particular crane, and that
the crane use will not conflict with other operations in the area.
Cranes may also be operated by qualified crane service personnel who have
been subcontracted to install, maintain or repair cranes.
To become certified for operating cranes up to two tons, the following is required:
Note that crane and hoist operators with this certification may not operate cranes or hoists with a capacity larger than 2 tons to lift loads of less than 2 tons or without any load.
To become certified for operating cranes or hoists with a capacity greater than 2 tons, the following is required:
Mobile cranes and truck mounted cranes. Operation of mobile cranes is restricted to professional riggers who have been certified as competent and qualified mobile crane operators by an independent certification agency. For the purpose of this rule, small truck-mounted jib cranes under 2 tons are not considered mobile cranes.
Operation of cranes from a cab is restricted to professional riggers.
For each crane or hoist, a current employee must be identified as the crane manager. The following requirements for the crane manager apply:
When a crane manager vacancy occurs, the Division Safety Coordinator must notify the Facilities Division Crane and Elevator office with a replacement. The Crane and Elevator Office will lock any and all cranes and hoists for which no crane manager is identified in the off position until a crane manager is identified.
The following rules apply to all use of cranes and hoists at the Lab.
Any electric powered crane that is not attended by a qualified operator for an entire shift and during off hours must be secured by locked controls, or equivalent means such as preventing access to the crane by locking the doors, or locking up radio controls. Only the crane manager or another qualified and authorized user of the secured crane may have control of the locking mechanism.
Each crane or hoist must be inspected by a qualified crane operator before use, during any given work shift. The inspection can be documented on a tag attached to the crane controls, or it may be documented in a log that is kept with the key that unlocks the crane controls. If the crane is not used during any shift, it does not need to be inspected. Inspection tags will be collected by the crane service contractor and kept on record. Where applicable, crane inspection logs will be reviewed by the crane service contractor. A typical crane inspection checklist is shown in Appendix A.
All personnel participating in lifts involving cranes or hoists must wear ANSI-approved safety shoes.
All personnel operating a crane or hoist, participating in the lift or within 15 feet of the vertical plane of the load, where the under carriage of the bridge is more than 12 feet from the ground, must wear ANSI-approved hard hats. Post or barricade the area as needed.
Sturdy work gloves must be worn when handling wire rope or loads with rough or sharp edges or splinters.
The crane operator is responsible for verifying that the load is properly rigged.
Obtain assistance from the LBNL professional rigging crew for loads that require special rigging. Be particularly careful with potentially unstable loads, including choker lifts of long loads and loads with a high center of gravity (e.g., lifting pallet loads with slings).
Heavy lifts should be made by the professional rigging crew that performs such work routinely. Where there is a need for other personnel to lift loads over 10,000 lbs, the proposed lift must be reviewed with and approved informally by the supervisor of the professional rigging crew or his designee.
Using a crane to tilt a load (standing up a load that is lying down or vice versa) carries a significant risk of shock-loading the crane or losing control of the load. When such operations involve loads that exceed 50% of the rated capacity of the crane, they must be reviewed by and may be performed only with the informal approval of the supervisor of the professional rigging crew or his designee.
Follow these rules for suspended loads:
If any component fails during a lift, or if there is any uncontrolled or unintended motion of the load during the lift, the lift must be terminated immediately in the safest manner possible. Lifting may only resume after the failure or unintended motion has been investigated, and appropriate corrective steps have been implemented. Notify the crane manager, and contact EH&S and the Facilities Division Crane and Elevator Office for assistance.
High-consequence/high-value lifts are parts, components, assemblies, or lifting operations designated as such by the customer (i.e., the Lab manager who requires the item to be moved) or program organizations because the effect of dropping, upset, or collision of items could:
In addition, any lift/move that requires the simultaneous use of both the main and auxiliary hoists of a given crane or the simultaneous use of two cranes shall be considered a high-consequence/high-value lift/move.
A detailed, step-by-step procedure in the form of an Engineering Note must be prepared for each high-consequence/high-value lift/move. This requirement covers lifts and moves by forklifts as well as by cranes. A sample Engineering Note format may be obtained from the Engineering Division. While high-consequence/high-value lift procedures are customarily prepared for one-time use, general high-consequence/high-value lift procedures may be employed to accomplish routine recurrent high-consequence/high-value lift operations. For example, a general high-consequence/high-value lift procedure may be used to lift shielding blocks, or to lift a frequently lifted
Responsibility for preparing the high-consequence/high-value lift Engineering
Note rests with the customer, i.e., the Lab manager who requires the item
to be moved. The customer can discharge this responsibility by indicating
on the Facilities Work Request that the scope of work should include preparation
of the Engineering Safety Note and management of the move. It is the
responsibility of the customer to notify all personnel whose approval is
required early in the process. See Section
27.8.2 (Approval of and Changes to High-Consequence/High-Value Lift Procedures), below. Approvers
have special expertise and are available to provide guidance during the design
of the lifting procedure. Please allow sufficient time for the review
and approval process. There is no charge for the review and approval
process.
The procedure must contain the following:
The procedure must be reviewed and approved by:
All reviewers should be consulted early in the process to assure that their
concerns are addressed, avoiding the need for later revisions to the procedure.
Unanticipated conditions may require on-the-spot changes of the lift procedure. Approvers
of the lift procedure should be present during the lift, or at least they
should be immediately available to approve changes. Changes must be
recorded on the procedure, and must be initialed by all available approvers
before they are implemented.
Each person involved in a high-consequence/high-value lift must be familiar with the procedure before beginning work. A pre-lift meeting with all participating personnel must be held before the lift. All participating personnel must initial the procedure sign-off sheet to verify that they are familiar with the procedure.
Approval from the Crane and Elevator Office in the Facilities Division must
be obtained before purchasing hoists or cranes, or lifting equipment such
as shackles, clevises, wire rope or fabric slings, or spreader bars (strong-backs). Procurement
will not process any purchase orders for such equipment without this approval. The
preferred method for ordering hoisting and rigging equipment is to request
that that the Crane and Elevator Office order the items, using an account
number provided by the requestor.
If used equipment is procured, it must be inspected and certified to meet
all applicable standards in force at the time of the acquisition.
For LBNL-designed and/or fabricated lifting devices, see Section
27.10, below.
When equipment is received, the recipient must contact the Crane and Elevator
Office to have the equipment inventoried for routine inspection and maintenance. All
hoisting and rigging equipment used at the Laboratory must have an LBNL proof
load tag attached with a current inspection sticker. The user, supervisor,
and operator are directly responsible for verifying the presence of current
proper tagging of hoisting and rigging equipment prior to use.
Lifting devices include shackles, swivel hoist rings, eyebolts,
rigging hooks, turnbuckles, and other commercial equipment. Lifting devices
may become part of a lifting fixture.
Lifting fixtures include all equipment that is used to
lift a load by means of a crane or similar device. Lifting fixtures include
spreader bars, special slings, and other commercial devices. Lifting fixtures
also include shipping containers, experimental framework, and structural
components of experimental devices if such are used to function in effect
as lifting fixtures. Lifting fixtures do not include pallets, shipping
containers, or framework that is lifted from below by means of a forklift
or pallet jack.
Each division is responsible for the safety and inspection of its lifting
devices (such as screw pin shackles, hoist rings, commercial equipment,
etc.) and for its lifting fixtures (such as spreader bars,
special slings, equipment designed at the Laboratory, etc.). LBNL
proof load tags and inspection stickers must be current, where
applicable. Special-purpose lifting fixtures must be marked with a Laboratory
Equipment Number, and labeled to identify applicable Engineering Safety
Notes for fixture design and/or high-value/high-consequence lift/moves.
All lifting fixtures designed at the Laboratory must be proof-tested to twice
their maximum rated loads before being placed in service. A Non-Destructive
Examination (NDE) is required after the proof test. The exact type of NDE
must be specified in the Engineering Safety Note for the lifting fixture.
The rated capacity must be marked on the lifting fixture so that it is clearly
visible to the equipment operator.
Order commercially available lifting fixtures through the crane and elevator
office to assure they are ordered with a certificate of proof load testing. For
commercial lifting fixtures without certified load ratings, an Engineering
Safety Note must be written to determine the safe load capacity, and to furnish
guidance for load testing.
Where the lifting fixture cannot be proof-tested because it is an integral
part or component of the experimental device, equivalent alternative safety
precautions acceptable to the Mechanical Engineering designee must be described
in the Engineering Safety Note, which delineates the lift procedure.
All lifting device pins of 5 cm (2 in.) in diameter or larger
must have a magnetic particle inspection before they are placed in service.
These pins are always part of a lifting device or fixture. Make arrangements
with the Facilities Crane and Elevator Office, MS 76-222, ext. 5386, or the Work
Request Center, ext. 6274, to have lifting fixtures inspected.
Active lifting devices and fixtures must be examined by an NDE at least once
every four years (or upon request), using magnetic particle detection or
other appropriate methods. Make arrangements to have lifting fixtures inspected
with the Facilities Crane and Elevator Office, MS 76-212, ext. 5386, or contact
the Work Request Center. Records must be maintained by the Facilities Crane
and Elevator Office, and NDE organizations. Inactive lifting devices
and fixtures must be clearly marked “STOP DO NOT USE,” and must
be load tested and certified prior to renewed use.
The Responsible User must ensure that:
The Responsible Designer must obtain design approval by means of an Engineering Safety Note, as described below. For equipment designed at the Laboratory, the Responsible Designer must provide the user with the information required to operate the lifting device or fixture safely. The Facilities Division will provide a test report to the user upon request.
A qualified engineer must be designated to be responsible for the design,
fabrication, and testing of lifting fixtures not purchased commercially.
The actual physical testing usually will be performed by the Facilities Division
in accordance with the written test procedure specified by the Project Engineer.
All lifting fixtures designed or fabricated at the Laboratory must be covered
by an Engineering Safety Note. The Engineering Safety Note must include the
calculation of lifting fixture stresses and deflections, and must be reviewed
and approved by the following:
The design stress for lifting fixtures or lifting attachment
points must not exceed one-fifth the ultimate strength of the material at
its operating temperature. If welded fabrication is used, the design stress
must take into consideration any weakening effects of welding, such as those
that occur in aluminum alloys.
If practical, avoid welding in the fabrication of lifting fixtures. If welding
must be used, design and fabrication in conformance with the latest standards
of the American Welding Society (AWS) are required. Careful, thoughtful design
and follow-up are required.
Follow these rules for all lifting fixtures:
Any deviation from these rules requires equivalent alternative safety measures that have been explicitly approved by the Mechanical Engineering Designee.
When equipment is designed to be crane-lifted at a single point with a single-bolt
pickup device, the vertical lifting load through the screw thread
of the bolt must be in line with the axis of the bolt so the load will
remain level when it is lifted. With this bolt alignment, the lift will
be through the center of gravity and will be safer, since the load will
not tilt or kick out when it is lifted. A single-bolt pickup device must
be used, such as a safety hoist ring or equivalent in-house
device that is carefully designed and maintained. The threaded engagement
must comply with the requirements in the Design section above.
When a load is to be crane lifted by slings from a crane hook through two,
three, or four pickup points located at the corners of the load, and without
the use of a spreader bar, the forces at the lift points are nonvertical.
Again, a single-bolt pickup device, such as a safety hoist ring or equivalent
in-house device that is carefully designed and maintained must be used at
each pickup point.
Eyebolts without shoulders are not allowed for use in lifting any load. Eyebolts
with shoulders are permitted for lifting loads when the following conditions
are met:
The use of unrated eyebolts or eyebolts in applications not specifically approved by the manufacturer must be specifically approved by an Engineering Safety Note.
Supervisors must make certain that personnel know how to safely operate cranes and hoists and how to move objects safely. Only those employees who are formally qualified by training and certification may operate a crane or hoist. Supervisors must enforce the use of safe lifting techniques, and maintain lifting equipment in good mechanical and operating condition.
Employees are required to observe all established safety regulations relating to safe lifting and handling techniques.
The Mechanical Engineering Designee will review and approve Engineering Safety Notes for lifting fixtures and high-value/high-consequence lifts/moves on behalf of the Engineering Division Director and for the Mechanical Engineering Subcommittee of the Safety Review Committee. The Mechanical Engineering Designee may approve reasonable engineering alternatives not in conflict with LBNL Work Smart Standards. He or she is also available to furnish guidance to Laboratory staff free of charge.
The Responsible Designer is accountable for incorporating the requirements of this chapter into the design of lifting fixtures and procedures, and for initiating the required proof testing. The responsible designer must obtain design approval by means of an Engineering Safety Note.
Customer management is accountable for defining and requesting any move/lift; determining which lifts are high-consequence/high-value lifts; writing lifting procedures where required; providing technical information on relevant characteristics of the apparatus, including special lifting fixtures when required; providing suggestions on rigging and moving; and assigning someone to represent the customer during planning and coordination of all aspects of the job being performed. The customer can discharge this responsibility by indicating on the Facilities Work Request that the scope of work should include preparation of an Engineering Safety Note and management of the move. Customer management is also responsible for ensuring that lifting devices and lifting fixtures are properly documented and inspected, and that they are used and maintained safely.
The Facilities Division Structural Engineering Group Designee will evaluate
building floor loading, lifting fixtures and lifting devices for structural
adequacy; review and approve engineering safety notes for lifting fixtures,
lifting devices, and high-consequence/high-value lifts on behalf of the Facilities
Division and the Safety Advisory Committee (SAC) Mechanical Engineering Subcommittee; establish design
parameters for all cranes and hoists; and provide guidance on wind loading
for outdoor moves/lifts. The Facilities Structural Designee is also available
to provide guidance to Laboratory staff on these matters free of charge.
The Facilities Division Rigging Supervisor or his designee will provide guidance and supervision for routine lifts when requested, participate in the development and review of high-consequence/high-value moves/lifts, and participate in pre-lift meetings.
The Crane and Elevator Office will arrange for all inspection, testing, and certification of cranes, hoists, and rigging. On request, this office will also arrange for the testing and certification of lifting devices and lifting fixtures.
The EH&S Division Designee will review all high-consequence/high-value move/lift engineering safety notes for conformance to these requirements, and will participate in pre-lift meetings for high-consequence/high-value moves/lifts.
29 CFR 1910, Occupational Safety and Health Standards for General Industry,
Subpart N – Materials Handling and Storage, paragraphs
1910.179
Overhead and Gantry Crane
1910.180
Crawler, Locomotive and Truck Cranes
1910.184
Slings
29 CFR 1926, Occupational Safety and Health Standards for Construction,
paragraph 1926.251 Rigging Equipment for Material Handling
California Code of Regulations, Title 8, Subchapter 4, Construction Safety
Orders (as it pertains to cranes used in construction work)
ASME B30.2-2001, Overhead and Gantry Cranes (Top Running Bridge, Single or
Multiple Girder, Top Running Trolley Hoist)
ASME B30.17-2003, Overhead and Gantry Cranes (Top Running Bridge, Single
Girder, Underhung Hoist)
ASME B30.5-2004, Mobile and Locomotive Cranes
ASME B30.9-2003, Slings
ASME B30.10-1999, Hooks
ASME B30.11-2004, Monorails and Underhung Cranes
ASME B30.16-2003, Overhead Hoists (Underhung)
ASME B30.20-2003, Below-the-Hook Lifting Devices
ASME B30.21-1999, Manually Lever Operated Hoists
Figure A-1. Front of Daily Crane Inspection Tag
Figure A-2. Back of Daily Crane Inspection Tag
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