What To Expect When Renting A Crane For Your Jobsite
When you need to lift something heavy higher than a forklift or loader can reach, or to a spot that other equipment can get to, a crane rental is often a good option. The type of crane and the size you need will depend on what you need to lift and where it needs to go.
Contracting A Crane
Crane rentals include the crane and an operator to run the crane for you. Even if you are an experienced operator, most rental companies rely on their own operators because of insurance regulations and concerns that something could be damaged on the machine if an operator makes a mistake with it.
When you hire a crane rental company to perform a lift for you, they will need to know what they are lifting and the conditions on the site. A mobile crane is heavy, so working on a muddy site or with soft soil can be a significant problem for the crane and operator.
Taking a few photographs of the site and sending them to the crane rental company is a good idea. The pictures can help them determine what they need to do to access the site and how to best do the lift for you.
Direction And The Lift
When the crane rental company arrives on your site, they will often bring a rigger or assistant with them. The crane operator and rigger are in charge of the lift, and the rigger will direct the crane operator to ensure the lift goes perfectly.
Let the crane operator decide where things need to be placed, and how to best approach the lift. They are the best judge of how to reach the building or other place the load will land. If they can't see the spot they need to hit, the rigger is the best person to direct them, and the operator and rigger will often have a set of signals they use to communicate with each other.
Eliminate Delays
It is crucial that you are ready to make the lift when the crane rental company arrives on your job site. If the load is not ready when the crane arrives, you may miss the opportunity to get the job done. Often the crane service has several lifts scheduled throughout the day, and they may not wait for the load to be delivered or arrive on the site.
If you are concerned about whether or not the item will arrive on time, reschedule the lift to another day. If the crane service does have time to wait on-site, the additional cost you will pay for the time can be significant.
Contact a crane rental service in your area for more information.
