Load chart debate after a close call at the Port of Newark

Back in August I had a 40 ton Grove on a job at the Port of Newark picking steel beams. I was at 75% radius and the load felt light on the hook, but the chart said I was at 80% capacity. My signal guy kept telling me to go further out, but I stuck to the chart and came up short. Some of the old timers say you got wiggle room on those charts, but the book says what it says. Do you guys trust the chart numbers or go by feel when you know the load is lighter?

2 comments

2 Comments

park.troy1mo ago

That 80% on the chart is a hard number for a reason, man. I had a buddy ignore it once with a light-looking load on a 50 ton and the boom buckled (scary stuff). Stick to the chart, your signal guy doesn't have to sign the incident report.

paulb9824d ago

Agree with you @park.troy, that's no joke. I watched a guy try to fudge it on an old Link-Belt 100 ton with a load that looked easy. He was about 75% on the chart but figured he had room. The boom started to sag real fast, then it snapped clean in half. Took six months to get the crane back and the insurance fight was brutal. Never again.