another crane accident cleveland

A tree co near me had their 23 ton Manitex break off at the turret. Supposedly no load just reaching for the pic. The crane was maybe 2 yrs old.
 
Manitex doesn't make a 23 ton, as far as I know. They go from 22 ton to the 30 ton. Did you mean 22 ton or was it a Terex?

That sounds screwed up, and frankly I find that hard to believe, "no load"?? And 2 yrs old?! I'm not buying it, I'll bet there is more to the story here, like gross overloading in the past, that just doesn't happen without a damn good reason, especially with nothing on the hook! No offense meant as to your recounting of the incident BTW.
 
No offense taken. Probably the 22 ton. Given the operator and what I saw of his work I don't disagree. That it failed when he didn't have anything on the hook (his story) would only be the likely results of everything else he did to abuse it leading up to the failure.

I saw the pics after the fact but not the actual incident. I don't think it even made the news here.
 
Some years ago Manitex came out with a turret mod after some failures in that area. All these failures were caused by severe overloading or so I was told by a long time Manitex New York City area fleet operator. He was not affiliated with the company so I tend to believe him as recounting the facts correctly. He said the crane can do so much operated correctly that some wanted it to do even more.

He freely told me this as I was inspecting my current machine, which I subsequently bought from him. I didn't ask about it as I didn't know. He went on to show me the mod, it is basically a big gusset that further ties in the horizontal turret to the vertical mount that ties into the mount frame. It was an overkill solution he said, as many were still operating without that mod, just not overloaded. Whatever.... mine had the mod,and I'm still very happy with my purchase.

A few years later, a buddy in Arizona bought a 22101S, based on my experience with what a great bang for the buck it represents in the light crane market. After three different behind the cab boom trucks, this sitting on your arse while having all the other benefits of the design, made me a believer to this day in the design. Anyway, his DID NOT have the mod, it had over 5000 hrs on it, and with no problems. Based on my telling of my story concerning the mod, he had the mod installed by a big time Phoenix area dealer, who claimed it was overkill and not needed. End of story....if you have a 22101S, don't overload it. Get the mod if it doesn't have it already, and THEN don't overload it, common sense really! If you have ANY type crane, don't overload it!
 
Common sense and production demands seem to often be on a collision course. For some ops it's also a macho thing. Pullin' bigger wood and overreaching. This guy did a lot of fishing with the crane.

Think about the Big Blue accident in Milwaukee, pressure to get the job done despite wind conditions gusting above the maximum.
 
I wish all the crane ops I've worked with over the years were as diligent and thoughtful as Courierguy. I feel like some are on that level, but others are closer to homicidal maniacs.
 
This tree service worked this old truck over the front with no front stabilizer. Three doors down from me when i first found out who they were...hence the first trunk section on the back opposite corner of the bed when the oops happened...doubt any safeties at all on the old truck...owner was a nice guy if that means anything. Hes not really with the crew though...he grinds/bounces his way through the stumps.
 
From what I know, the owner has another job. Started tree co to make extra money. Just hires ppl to do work. Operator of crane did side job with one of our climbers last year, scared him to death. And he works with our crane daily. Every time we see their crew out , no helmets, chaps, ear plugs, sunglasses if sunny only, shorts. Can only imagine when last inspection was done on cranes or buckets. At least they are cheaper than most others, right? Homeowners don't seem to realize with a super cheap price corners are being cut somewhere. It is not right when in is at employee and the publics well being . At least no one was hurt, maybe a wake up call they, and others can learn from.
 
Just more fuel for the fire,the one that the tree industry is burning to keep certification out of your industry.Most of you guys sound like you run responsible operations and probably wouldn't balk at regulations that might protect you and eliminate the slobs that cause all these headlines and drag you down with them.BTW when the big "O" come looking they come after us too,a boom in the air looks the same if it's a tree guy or a crane guy.From what I can detect there are more real tree guys then most people might think.I've kiddingly suggested to a couple of my customers that they need a shirt that says,"Don't Call The Police Lady,I'm The Tree Guy"
 
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Just more fuel for the fire,the one that the tree industry is burning to keep certification out of your industry.Most of you guys sound like you run responsible operations and probably wouldn't balk at regulations that might protect you and eliminate the slobs that cause all these headlines and drag you down with them.BTW when the big "O" come looking they come after us too,a boom in the air looks the same if it's a tree guy or a crane guy.From what I can detect there are more real tree guys then most people might think.I've kiddingly suggested to a couple of my customers that they need a shirt that says,"Don't Call The Police Lady,I'm The Tree Guy"

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personally I'm not in favor of more government regulation.The government is not the answer to your problems.Regulation just makes the lives of law abiding honest business owners more complicated.Honestly If I were you I wouldn't want to work for the people who hire the kinds of companies that end up on the news in this manner.It's your job as a salesman to bring these facts to light in front of a potential customer,if they're just interested in the cheapest price no matter what,then you don't want the job anyway.DON'T LOOK TO GOVERNMENT TO HELP YOU!!!!all government can do is impede freedom
 
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