Importance of Soil Conditions When Setting Up a Crane
Getting a crane ready for a job, starts by making sure the soil conditions are ideal for the crane is the first step. Learn more about soil conditions and cranes.
Getting a crane ready for a job, starts long before the crane even arrives on site. Making sure the ground conditions are ideal for the crane set up is the first step in any project taken on by Concord Cranes. Let’s look at the most important factors to consider when it comes to soil conditions before setting up a crane on site. We’ll also explore what the risks are to poor pre-planning when it comes to soil conditions and what safety precautions should be taken to ensure the best results.
Understanding Soil Conditions for Cranes
What are the most important factors to consider when it comes to soil conditions on site?
Before setting up a crane on site, an appointed person (that might be the site manager, safety officer, engineer, or the crane operator) must ensure that the loads imposed by the crane can be safely transmitted into the ground. In layman’s terms this means, checking the ground conditions are suitable to carry both the crane’s load and the load it will be handling.
These are Concord’s top four things to consider when checking for ground suitability:
- Type of soil – are you dealing with sand, clay, silica, or a combination soil?
- Evenness ground – is the ground even or uneven?
- Underground piping – are there any underground pipes under the soil surface that could be affected by the weight of the crane on top of them?
- Ground conditions – is the site adjacent to a river, estuary, beach, or marsh? Is the site on a floodplain, on a landfill site, or on an area with a high groundwater level?
What are the risks of poor soil conditions to a crane set up?
Poor soil conditions could lead to a crane or outrigger pushing through the ground resulting in the crane tipping over. This could happen at any time during the project and could even take place when the crane is carrying a load which could result in serious injury and damage to property and equipment.
What safety precautions should be taken to ensure best results?
Thorough inspections should be carried out before any crane is set up on site. Before the crane starts work, a dummy run should be carried out lifting a load very close to the ground while at the same time continuous monitoring of how the ground reacts to the outrigger pressure occurs.
At Concord Cranes, we believe in being over-prepared when it comes to site readiness and safety, especially when referring to soil conditions. Our motto often is, if you fail to prepare, you prepare to fail.” says Luke Dixie, Sales Executive for Concord Cranes.
To learn more about our crane hire and rigging services, contact the Concord Cranes team today on 011 805 8071
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