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Posted By Jason Holmes
One for all you crane experts out there.
I am assisting one of our contractors with creating a suitable rescue plan for evacuation from a man riding basket.
The contractor is a civil engineering contractor using their own machinary. They use a crane/man rider basket when constructing shafts (for lowering operatives to the base or for grouting the shaft wall etc.).
I have a query regarding rescue procedures if the crane were to breakdown whilst the basket was suspended, still with operatives inside (Enclosed basket with inward opening door and operatives clipped on to secure anchor points within the basket).
The contracor has told me that their crane has an automatic locking/braking system which will hold the basket in place until either the crane can be repaired or Emergency services can attend site.
I thought that Emergency services must not be counted on when creating a rescue plan.
They do have a second crane on site with a spare basket but the thought of them transfering across is frightening.
I thought there maybe special mechanisms fitted to these cranes which could allow a safe, manual lowering of the basket in case of emergency but the contractor informs me these are prone to vandalism and are not fitted to his machines (could be that they are expensive and he does not want to pay for them to be fitted!)
The actual shaft has a secondary means of escape (a fixed, hooped shaft ladder)
What would be a feasable evacuation procedure?
Any ideas?
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Posted By Dave Merchant
It's a fun one this, as you could argue it two ways.
If the worker is in a fully-enclosed basket, and 'stuck' but not in any danger, then the need for a rescue isn't all that urgent. You still need a plan, but it could involve the emergency services as they'll have time to attend. If there's a medical problem with the worker, so the rescue needs to be fast, then you can assume the crane is working at that point. Rescue plans do not need to account for two unrelated simultaneous faults.
Having said that, the FB may not be of much help anyway - a line ops team would be able to do something, but they can take over an hour to arrive in some areas of the UK.
The sensible option would be to put an escape set in the basket (an autodescender device of the type used in tower cranes for driver evacuation). As the worker already has a harness on, they can use the device to 'abseil' out of the basket, then climb out using the ladder. It needs only minimal training and there are several brands on the market available with pretty much any length of rope you want. Email me if you want some brand names and suppliers.
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Posted By JLH70
Thanks for that Dave,
Pretty much confirms my thoughts.
The only issue that may arise is that although the operatives are in relative safety, the basket will be inside a large shaft (app 15m dia by app. 15m deep) so there is always a risk of gas (obviously all operatives are confined space trained and gas detectors & escape sets are with them).
I will definately look into the autodescender system (and would be greatful for any further info on these).
Thanks for your help,
Kind Regards,
Jason
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Posted By Peter MacDonald
Jason
If a second crane is available a solution is for the basket to have a second set of chains and shackle available. If a problem occurs the second crane manouvers into position and the second set of chains can be attached to the hook. The weight is taken by the second crane allowing the basket to be detached from the original crane hook. It does sound daunting but it is a relatively simple task for operatives that have been trained properly.
Regards
Peter
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Posted By tom boland
gotcha is the manufacturer of descender kits we use
can be placed in secute location in basket
i'd rather not be the one coming down though :)
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