OSHA Rigging Safety Requirements

OSHA Rigging Safety Requirements

By Emily Beach, eHow Contributor

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The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is a U.S. government organization responsible for protecting workers' safety rights. It was developed in 1970 by the OSH Act, the goal of which was to reduce work-related injuries and deaths. Standards developed by OSHA are strictly enforced, with heavy financial penalties for those found not complying. Regulations are numerous in health care and manufacturing but especially stringent in the construction field, where workers face a large variety of potential hazards each day. One of the biggest dangers on the construction field is the operation of rigging equipment. Rigging involves the use of cranes and other large pieces of equipment to lift steel and other materials to upper levels of the building. This practice is heavily regulated by OSHA, and rules and regulations to construction rigging can be found in OSHA Standard 1926.

Inspections

Per OSHA Standard 1926, all cranes must be inspected prior to each use by a trained inspector. This is generally an employee of the crane company or the operator of the machine. Inspections include all control mechanisms, air lines, hydraulic lines, ropes, fluid levels and electrical devices on the machine. All crane safety devices should also be checked, including boom kick-outs and load indicators. Finally, the ground around the machine and where it will be used that day should be inspected for stable soils, water accumulation and any potential hazards. If any signs of danger are found, the crane should not be used until all problems are resolved.

Working Under Rigging Loads

Daily rigging operations should be preplanned so that no employees are working under a loaded crane during operation. The only exception to this rule is trained crane company employees who are responsible for hooking and unhooking the steel to the crane, or who are helping to guide the steel into position. To prevent materials from falling, the steel must be rigged using self-closing safety latches. All rigging and latching must be done by qualified riggers or operators.

Rigging Multiple Items

In most cases, only one beam (or piece of material) can be lifted at a time. For cranes designed to lift multiple items in one load, up to five items can be lifted at once. This applies only to beams and other structural framing members. To complete this operation safely, all members of the rigging and operating team must have received training on multiple-item lifts and the special considerations associated with this process. Cranes designed for single-piece lifting may not be used for multiple-piece lifts in any scenario.

Total Loads

Each crane or piece of rigging equipment is rated by the manufacturer based on the load it is designed to lift. Lifting heavier loads than those recommended can result in the machine breaking down or hoisted materials falling to the ground below. Heavy loads can even put the machine off balance and cause it to tip over, despite stabilizers. This type of scenario can cause catastrophic damage to workers all over the site. To minimize this risk, OSHA requires cranes to come equipped with a rigging rating chart that specifies load capabilities for that particular model. Loads should never exceed those specified on this chart.

Rigging Requirements

All steel beams and equipment must be secured (rigged) to the crane according to OSHA Standard 1926. This states that rigging should be done by trained individuals. All items must be attached at a points that represent their centers of gravity. Items should be kept level to avoid the possibility of slipping out of the rigging. They should be rigged from the top down, and multiple items should be rigged at least 7 feet (2.1 m) apart from one another. Multiple items should be loaded from the bottom up, stacked evenly on top of one another.

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