[RIGGER’S CORNER]
TOP 5 MISUSES OF GANTRIES
BY: PATRICK CLARK, NATIONAL RENTAL SUPPORT MANAGER AT LIFTING GEAR HIRE
Gantry cranes are portable, lightweight, and affordable lifting solutions with sturdy A-frame design. Gantries have many great features such as height adjustment, span adjustment and the heavy-duty casters. As with any good thing there comes the possibility of misuse. Below are five of the most common misuses to avoid.
NEVER SIDE LOAD A GANTRY When using a gantry never apply a perpendicular force to the plane of the beam. It is sometime taken for granted that this may be a temporary setup and is intended to replace a permanent overhead beam where you otherwise do not have one. Just the same, you would want to ensure that a structural beam could take on tension from angles not in the plane, as well.
DON’T FORGET TO SET THE LOAD PIN Never use the vertical inserts without a load pin in place. It can be tempting to use the inserts without the pin on an occasion where headroom is extremely limited. However, the bottom of the inserts should not be touching the ground when the gantry is in use. Te equipment is not designed for these forces to be unsupported by the pin, and it is a dangerous act.
ADJUSTING THE HEIGHT IS AN EQUALITY ISSUE
When adjusting the height of the beam do so at the same speed keeping the beam level. Worst case, never hoist one end higher than 12'' ahead of the other side. You’ll risk binding the posts.
DON’T CRANE THE CRANE Once the gantry is fully assembled it should not be hoisted by a crane or other machinery to another location. If you cannot safely roll the gantry to the next location when assembled, take the precaution of disassembling the gantry, then relocate it to the desired location.
REMOVING CASTERS WILL
MAKE YOU AN OUTCAST Te gantry should never be used without the casters installed. We have heard customers removing the casters to save on overall headroom or they have believed it would be better to have more surface contact from the bottom plate which secures the casters. Either is a no-no, and if you refer the ASME B.30 regarding gantries, once you have altered or modified the equipment, it will lose its certification. y
For more about lifting and rigging equipment and safety, see
blog.lgh-usa.com
With over a decade of industry knowledge and experience, Patrick Clark held the position of lifting equipment field representative for (LGH) the majority of his tenure. Since that this time, his role has changed. He has been involved in the creations and presentation of several safety and educational presentations, of which include the 2013 CRC/ICHC. He is charged with the sales and equipment knowledge training for LGH personnel while he manages a team that provides expertise in rental rigging, hoisting, jacking, winching and material handling equipment. In addition, he has participated in numerous educational and troubleshooting videos regarding some of LGH’s most notable equipment lines.
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MARCH–APRIL 2018
WIRE ROPE EXCHANGE
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