PCCA Journal|1
st
Quarter 2011
39
T
he U.S. Department of
Labor’s Occupational Safety
and Health Administration
(OSHA) released the follow-
ing fact sheet about its new standard ad-
dressing the use of cranes and derricks
in construction and replacing a decades
old standard. OSHA has also posted
more specific fact sheets on assembly
and disassembly, operator qualification
and certification, signal person qualifica-
tion, and qualified riggers as well as a
frequently asked questions page. They
are at www.osha.gov/cranes-derricks/
index.html.
One issue not addressed in the fact
sheet is exclusions, i.e., what is not
defined as a crane. On this subject, the
final rule states:
“Exclusions. This subpart does not
cover:
1.
Machinery included in paragraph a.
of this section while it has been con-
verted or adapted for a non-hoisting/
lifting use. Such conversions/adap-
tations include, but are not limited
to, power shovels, excavators, and
concrete pumps.
2.
Power shovels, excavators, wheel
loaders, backhoes, loader backhoes,
track loaders. This machinery is also
excluded when used with chains,
slings, or other rigging to lift sus-
pended loads.
3.
Automotive wreckers and tow trucks
when used to clear wrecks and haul
vehicles.
4.
Digger derricks when used for auger-
ing holes for poles carrying electric
and telecommunication lines, placing
and removing the poles, and for han-
dling associated materials to be in-
stalled on or removed from the poles.
Digger derricks used in work subject
to 29 CFR part 1926, subpart V, must
comply with 29 CFR 1910.269. Digger
derricks used in construction work
for telecommunication service as de-
fined at 29 CFR 1910.268(s)40)) must
comply with 29 CFR 1910.268.
5.
Machinery originally designed as
vehicle-mounted aerial devices (for
lifting personnel) and self-propelled
elevating work platforms.
6.
Telescopic/hydraulic gantry systems.
7.
Stacker cranes.
8.
Powered industrial trucks (forklifts)
except when configured to hoist and
lower (by means of a winch or hook)
and horizontally move a suspended
load.
9.
Mechanic’s truck with a hoisting
device when used in activities related
to equipment maintenance and
repair.
10.
Machinery that hoists by using a
come-a-long or chainfall.
11.
Dedicated drilling rigs.
12.
Gin poles when used for the erection
of communication towers.
13.
Tree trimming and tree removal
work.
14.
Anchor handling or dredge-related
operations with a vessel or barge us-
ing an affixed A-frame.
15.
Roustabouts.
16.
Helicopter cranes.”
Following is from the OSHA fact sheet:
In 1998, OSHA’s expert Advisory Com-
mittee on Construction Safety and Health
(ACCSH) established a workgroup to
develop recommended changes to the
current standard for cranes and derricks.
In December 1999, ACCSH recommend-
ed that the agency use negotiated rule-
making to develop the rule. The Cranes
and Derricks Negotiated Rulemaking
Committee (C-DAC) was convened in
July 2003 and reached consensus on its
draft document in July 2004. In 2006,
ACCSH recommended that OSHA use the
C-DAC consensus document as a basis
for OSHA’s proposed rule, which was
published in 2008. Public hearings were
held in March 2009, and the public com-
ment period on those proceedings closed
in June 2009.
•
The rule became effective 90 days
after August 9, 2010, the date the final
rule was published in the Federal Reg-
ister. Certain provisions have delayed
effective dates ranging from 1 to 4
years.
•
The final rule was published on Au-
gust 9, 2010, by the Federal Register,
and can be found at www.osha.gov/
FedReg_osha_pdf/FED20100809.pdf.
•
A copy of the regulatory text is avail-
able at www.osah.gov/doc/cranesreg.
pdf.
•
This new standard will comprehen-
sively address key hazards related to
cranes and derricks on construction
worksites, including the four main
causes of worker death and injury:
electrocution, crushed by parts of the
equipment, struck-by the equipment/
load, and falls.
•
Significant requirements in this new
rule include: a pre-erection inspection
of tower crane parts; use of synthetic
slings in accordance with the manu-
facturer’s instructions during assem-
bly/disassembly work; assessment of
ground conditions; qualification or
Safety News
Continued on page 40
Cranes and Derricks in Construction Final Rule