OSHA Cranes and Derricks Ruling
29 CFR Part 1926 - Seven years in the making, the OSHA Final Ruling on Cranes and Derrick’s became effective on November 8, 2010.
"The significant number of fatalities associated with the use of cranes in construction led the Labor Department to undertake this rulemaking," said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. "After years of extensive research, consultation and negotiation with industry experts, this long overdue rule will address the leading causes of fatalities related to cranes and derricks, including electrocution, boom collapse and overturning."
OSHA says about 4.8 million workers at 267,032 businesses will be affected by the rule. Among other things, it requires that qualified riggers be employed for rigging operations during assembly and disassembly, and it says employers must perform a pre-erection inspection of tower cranes. Record keeping requirements within the rule include equipment ratings, employee training records, written authorizations from qualified individuals, and qualification program audits.
Crane Signs and Labels related to the new ruling:
MELC169 - 7" x 10" - CAUTION - UNLAWFUL TO OPERATE THIS EQUIPMENT WITHIN 20 FEET OF HIGH VOLTAGE LINES
MELC161 - 10" x 14" - CAUTION - UNLAWFUL TO OPERATE THIS EQUIPMENT WITHIN 20 FT OF HIGH VOLTAGE LINES
MELC162 - 10" x 14" - DANGER - DO NOT OPERATE CRANE WITHIN 20 FEET OF OVERHEAD POWER LINES
MELC163 - 7" x 10" - CAUTION - UNLAWFUL TO OPERATE THIS EQUIPMENT WITHIN 20 FEET OF HIGH VOLTAGE LINES OF 50,000 VOLTS OR LESS
MELC164 - 10" x 14" - CAUTION - UNLAWFUL TO OPERATE THIS EQUIPMENT WITHIN 20 FEET OF HIGH VOLTAGE LINES OF 50,000 VOLTS OR LESS
MELC166 - NO HEADER - 7" x 10" - UNLAWFUL TO OPERATE THIS EQUIPMENT WITHIN 20 FEET OF HIGH-VOLTAGE LINES. ALL EQUIPMENT SHALL BE SO POSITIONED, EQUIPPED, OR PROTECTED SO THAT NO PART SHALL BE CAPABLE OF COMING WITHIN 20 FEET OF HIGH-VOLTAGE LINES
MELC167 - NO HEADER - 10" x 14" - UNLAWFUL TO OPERATE THIS EQUIPMENT WITHIN 20 FEET OF HIGH-VOLTAGE LINES. ALL EQUIPMENT SHALL BE SO POSITIONED, EQUIPPED, OR PROTECTED SO THAT NO PART SHALL BE CAPABLE OF COMING WITHIN 20 FEET OF HIGH-VOLTAGE LINES.
MELC168 - DANGER - 10" x 14" - DO NOT OPERATE WITHIN 20 FEET OF POWER LINES
MELC171 - ANSI - 14" x 10" - UNLAWFUL TO OPERATE THIS EQUIPMENT WITHIN 20 FEET OF OVERHEAD HIGH-VOLTAGE LINES CONTACT WITH POWER LINES CAN RESULT IN DEATH OR SERIOUS BURNS (W/ GRAPHIC)
MELC172 - ANSI - 7" x 10" - UNLAWFUL TO OPERATE THIS EQUIPMENT WITHIN 20 FEET OF OVERHEAD HIGH-VOLTAGE INES CONTACT WITH POWER LINES CAN RESULT IN DEATH OR SERIOUS BURNS
MELC173 - ANSI - 10" x 14" - UNLAWFUL TO OPERATE THIS EQUIPMENT WITHIN 20 FEET OF OVERHEAD HIGH-VOLTAGE INES CONTACT WITH POWER LINES CAN RESULT IN DEATH OR SERIOUS BURNS
LELC644 - CAUTION - 5" x 7" LABEL - UNLAWFUL TO OPERATE THIS EQUIPMENT WITHIN 20 FEET OF HIGH VOLTAGE LINES OF 50,000 VOLTS OR LESS
LELC647 - ANSI - 5" x 7" LABEL - UNLAWFUL TO OPERATE THIS EQUIPMENT WITHIN 20 FEET OF OVERHEAD HIGH-VOLTAGE INES CONTACT WITH POWER LINES CAN RESULT IN DEATH OR SERIOUS BURNS
LELC642 - DANGER - 3 1/2" x 5" LABEL - DO NOT OPERATE WITHIN 20 FEET OF POWER LINES
LELC643 - CAUTION - 3 1/2" x 5" LABEL - UNLAWFUL TO OPERATE THIS EQUIPMENT WITHIN 10 FEET OF HIGH VOLTAGE LINES
OSHA chief Dr. David Michaels held a media briefing regarding the ruling, which he described as "a big step forward in saving lives and decreasing injuries."
He said "conservatively," the rule will prevent 22 deaths per year. "There are somewhere in the vicinity of 100 deaths a year from cranes," he said. "This will prevent, we believe, 22 -- we certainly hope it will prevent more, but we didn't feel comfortable saying just this promulgation of this rule alone would prevent more than that. . . . We've seen too many crane accidents over the last decade where workers, passers-by, residents have been killed. We think this will make an important contribution in saving lives."
Click here for the OSHA Cranes and Derricks index page
Click here for the OSHA fact sheet
Crane Signal Items for Ground Personnel
LKC204M - Plastic Wallet Card - Mobile
LEQM541 - Adhesive Vinyl Label - Mobile
MEQM546 - Sign - Mobile
Crane-Related Hard Hat Decals
LHTL347 - Qualified Rigger
LHTL339 - Certified Crane Signal Person
LHTL343 - Qualified Crane Hand Signals
LHTL349 - Crane Safety Signals
