OSHA’s Standard for Cranes and Derricks in Construction

In 2010, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a final rule that established a new safety standard for worksites where cranes or derricks are used in construction. The standard went into effect on Nov. 10, 2010. OSHA later extended its application to the demolition and underground construction industries, effective May 23, 2013.    

The standard outlines several processes designed to prevent common hazards that could lead to injuries and fatalities during the assembly, disassembly, and operation of cranes and derricks. It also imposes an operator certification requirement, for which OSHA delayed the effective date until Nov. 10, 2018.

.This Compliance Overview provides a general summary of the standard.

Links and Resources

• OSHA’s cranes and derricks in construction website
• OSHA’s cranes and derricks FAQs
• OSHA’s small entity Compliance Guide for cranes and derricks in construction standard
• Current OSHA regulations on cranes and derricks in construction

Employer Obligations

• Verify operators are qualified to operate affected equipment.
• Determine whether the ground can support equipment and loads.
• Assess work zone hazards that would affect the safe operation of hoisting equipment.
• Conduct safety inspections of affected equipment.
• Provide hazard recognition training for employees.

Important Dates

Nov. 8, 2010

Effective date for cranes and derricks standard for the construction industry.

May 23, 2013

Effective date for cranes and derricks standard for demolition and underground construction.

Nov. 10, 2018

Deadline for crane operator certification.

Covered Entities

Osha’s cranes and derricks standard (the standard) applies to all employers that use cranes and derricks in construction, demolition, or underground construction. Employers whose personnel work at a site where cranes and derricks operate have responsibilities under the standard as well.

In general, the controlling entity of a project has the main responsibility for compliance with the standard on a construction site. A controlling entity may be either:

• The prime contractor, general contractor, or construction manager; or
• Any other legal entity with overall responsibility for the project’s planning, quality, and completion.

Additional entities that are subject to the standard include any:

• Assembly/disassembly (a/d) directors: these are individuals who meet the rule’s requirements for an a/d director, regardless of their formal job titles or whether they are in management;
• Certified welders: these are welders who meet nationally recognized certification requirements applicable to the task being performed;
• Designated competent person: this is defined as the individuals designated by a controlling entity who is capable of identifying existing and predictable hazards in the surroundings or working conditions that are unsanitary, hazardous or dangerous to employees, and who has authorization to take prompt corrective measures to eliminate them;
• Dedicated spotters (power lines): these are individuals who meet the qualifications for a signal person and whose sole responsibility is to watch the separation between the power line and the equipment, load line and load (including rigging and lifting accessories); and
• Qualified person: this is defined as an individual who, by possession of a recognized degree, certificate or professional standing, or who by extensive knowledge, training and experience, successfully demonstrated the ability to solve or resolve problems relating to the subject matter, the work or the project.

Covered Equipment

The OSHA standard applies to “power-operated equipment used in construction that can hoist, lower and horizontally move a suspended load.” The definition of covered equipment includes a non-exhaustive list that includes the following examples:

• Articulating cranes (such as knuckle-boom cranes);
• Crawler cranes;
• Floating cranes;
• Cranes on barges;
• Locomotive cranes;
• Mobile cranes; and
• Derricks

The standard also applies to these items when they are used with attachments (such as hooks, magnets, grapples, clamshell buckets, orange peel buckets, concrete buckets, draglines, personnel platforms, augers or drills, and pile driving equipment).

However, the standard exempts certain equipment, such as:

• Power shovels and excavators;
• Automotive wreckers and tow trucks (when used to clear wrecks and haul vehicles);
• Equipment used in tree trimming and tree removal: and
• Cranes used in certain types of material delivery.
  
  

Compliance Requirements

The standard contains requirements related to various situations involving the use of cranes and derricks in construction, such as crane inspection, set up, and disassembly. Major provisions of the rule require controlling entities to:

• Determine whether the ground is sufficiently firm to support the anticipated weight of hoisting equipment and associated loads;
• Assess hazards within the work zone that would affect the safe operation of hoisting equipment, such as power lines, objects and personnel within the work zone or swing radius of the hoisting equipment;
• Ensure that the equipment is in safe operating condition by conducting all required inspections; and
• Ensure that employees in the work zone are trained to recognize hazards associated with the use of the equipment and any related duties.

In addition, the standard requires employers to ensure that crane operators complete at least one of the following:

• Certification by an independent testing organization accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting organization;
• Qualification by an employer’s independently audited program;
• Qualification by the U.S. military; or
• Compliance with qualifying state or local licensing requirements (mandatory when applicable).

Although the operator certification requirements were part of the original final rule, OSHA delayed enforcement of these provisions until Nov. 10, 2018.