Crane operators and maintenance technicians are periodically required to clamber over the top of cranes, to access the engine or to inspect winches, ropes and other components. As it is not always practical to connect a harness to a tie-off point, the addition of handrails is designed to improve worker safety by helping to prevent falls.
Handrails were previously an option on Liebherr cranes but demand for them has risen in line with mounting concern about the issue of safe working at height in the US construction industry. It is an OSHA requirement that fall protection measures are adopted in the construction industry for any work at a height of six feet or more.
According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, falls from height accounted for 448 fatalities in the construction industry in 2007 – 38% of the industry’s total fatal accidents. The Bureau of Labor Statistics also reports that 74 people died at work in 2006 as a result of falling from a stationary vehicle. The number of non-fatal accidents is not known as not all accidents are reported.
A retrofit package is also available for owners of cranes produced by Liebherr Nenzing.
The handrails are designed in accordance with OSHA’s Fall Protection Standard 1926.502. They are made of hot dipped galvanized steel for a long maintenance-free life.
On the Liebherr LR series cranes the handrails can be folded down to travel underneath low bridges or other obstructions by releasing a couple of pins. On the Liebherr HS series the handrails can be simply pulled out and removed for transport.
Scott Moreland, vice president of Liebherr Nenzing Crane Co., said: “The introduction of hand-rails on our cranes is a simple measure for us to take to help promote safe working at height and further design-out slip and trip hazards.”
Liebherr Nenzing Crane Co. is based in Houston, Texas. It is the US sales and service subsidiary of Liebherr-Werk Nenzing GmbH of Austria, which is part of the $10.4bn-turnover Liebherr Group.