It doesn’t matter what standards the crane or hoist is tested to, nor does it make a difference how regularly it is inspected or how well it is maintained. If the rigging or slinging job is poor, there can be frightening consequences.
As Derrick Bailes, chief executive, Lifting Equipment Engineers Association (LEEA), put it in his column in the February issue: “To appreciate the importance of proper rigging gear inspection, one only has to consider the possible, indeed likely, consequences of a failure to implement a robust and effective inspection regime.”
A rigging inspector reads an RFID chip
To address some of these concerns, US firm Lift-It Manufacturing will host a sling, rigging and fall prevention conference, in Los Angeles, California, April 22-23.
The two-day seminar will address risk exposure and the identification of potential hazards common to the lifting business. Well done to president Mike Gelskey (okay, there are commercial benefits) for bringing this subject matter to the fore.
Day one features sling user and inspector classes, presented by Mike Gelskey, himself.
Fall prevention training and demonstrations will be presented by representatives from DBI/Sala during a factory tour of the Lift-It facility, which will also feature fabrication and testing demos.
The second day includes a sling and rigging class, presented by Harley Gist. The format will include basic and advanced rigging in a classroom setting, as well as hands on rigging in the afternoon.
Early registration is encouraged as class sizes are deliberately limited.
(Contact Michelle Brown, conference coordinator, tel: +1 323 582 6076 ex 715, email: michelle@lift-it.com. Registration forms can also be found on the Lift-It website at www.lift-it.com).
Without meaning to give Lift-It’s event a plug, not enough is done to address rigging and slinging. The abuse of slings is rife and shocking among a range of end user markets. Some are better than others.
Bailes continued: “Every item of equipment will deteriorate with age and usage. Wear, fatigue, corrosion and other forms of degradation will ultimately end its economic life. Clearly anything likely to result in dropping a load is a serious matter and the consequences in both human and monetary terms can be enormous.”
I agree. How does your firm measure up?
Richard Howes, Editor
