Had a crane boom deflection reading saved my buddy from a bad accident last month

I was always the guy who rolled eyes at those laser deflection tests. Thought they were just another paperwork thing the safety guys pushed. Then my friend Mike was setting a 20 ton HVAC unit on a roof in Austin, winds were like 15 mph steady, nothing crazy. He did his pre lift check and the deflection monitor showed the boom was bending way more than the chart said for that load. He stopped, recalculated, and found the load chart had the wrong boom angle on it. He would have been over capacity by about 4,000 pounds. That test probably saved him from tipping or worse. I called him after and he sent me a photo of the readout. Now I check those things every single time. Anyone else ever caught a load chart error like that?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_robin2d ago

Wind wasn't 15 mph steady here, that gust factor pushes it higher.

nina_taylor2d ago

Yeah a stiff gust made me change how I set up camp.

the_alex2d ago

Had the same thought honestly. Always figured steady wind is steady wind, gusts don't change much. But last week I was out and the forecast said 12 mph steady, then a 20 mph gust came through and nearly knocked me over. That changed my whole approach. Now I check the gust factor way closer, especially with lighter gear. Definitely made me reconsider how much difference those bursts make.