How to Operate a Tower Crane: Woff Luffing Tower Crane Dismantle
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- Опубликовано: 6 фев 2016
- I ran out of SD card so I didn't get Timelapse action I was trying to catch. It's not often that I get to sit in a luffing tower crane so I thought that I would share this video anyway.
I gotta say that I do enjoy the luffers except that they are terribly slow on the boom up and down functions when compared to a saddle jib crane. This one isn't my favorite because frankly I don't care for the Wolffkrans I have been able to run. To be fair, they are all older models. I like the swing quite a bit on this one. But the structure and ladders and so forth are always sub par and frankly not confidence inspiring. Maybe if I got to see a new one I would feel differently? 
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Keep the videos coming! These are some of the most informational crane videos I've found on the net. Thanks for getting this information out. Great videos!
Very informal Roy tag I'm just learning how the operate and go up keep up the good work
the way you so casually say " the crane is leaning forwards a bit" and then put your feet up to relax is disconcerting
Tower crane stuff. I'm not a religious man. But I have faith in crane structures.
I’m fascinated, I’ve never met a crane operator to ask questions. The obvious one is how the hell can you just stand so casually close to the rail looking down!!?? Giving me heart palpitations just watching 😂🤣
I get it. It feels completely different doing these things versus watching it. After 20 years of being on cranes, it feels pretty natural being up there. But I don't care to watch others doing the work too much.
Nice video, I really enjoy them! not many from the operators point of view
love these vids, used to be a signal man / operator until 2009, finding your channel made me realise how much I miss working with cranes, really enjoyed that kinda work. Took part in a few tower crane disassembly days, usually the crew did any of the tower operator work, we stayed on the ground. At what point do you begin the climb down during the process. Great vids, keep em coming.
+Keith McFadden This one was quick. Since we had a 550 ton hydro to pull it down, we pulled the counterweight in two picks. Swung around for the boom. Single picked that off. As they were hoisting it down I spun it back around, got it squared up on the turntable and I was done. Probably two hours on site? That was long only because they had issues getting the hydro issues sorted out. They also had an issue because the paint marks from erecting it were missing so there were discussions about jib sizing and pick points. For some reason we all had different data on the jib length.
I am considering getting back into erecting cranes. I miss parts of it too.
THIS IS FREAKING COOL!!!
More videos PLEASE!!
You're in Bellevue, cool. I've been over at the Lincoln Square Expansion for almost 2 years.
+brysawn I am all over the place. I'm one of the crane certifiers and Seaburg's Operation Manager. You guys have been putting in some hours over at Lincoln. I was on the first couple of phases there as a crane erector.
Ok just subscribed I'm actually very interested in cranes and was wondering this may sound dumb but were you ever close to having the crane ever fall down from like heavy loads or anything? I'm more opposite I'm more scared of cranes falling down then being up heights 😅
I've been on a crane 6-7 times where it felt like we were pushing the envelope. Once was a computer board issue. Liebherrs after 2005 have computers that read all of the parameters. It was putting out data, but not limiting the crane. The technician was saying go ahead with the test, I was the inspector saying stop. We were passing what I was seeing as 120% and I had to put up a tantrum to get everyone to stop. After being on 1000's a cranes at the limit, you could feel that we were well passed it.
I was operating an old tiny crane. Air placed concrete (Shotcrete) gets smoothed out and has spoils. These typically get put into cow pie mounds and rebar is placed in them. The guys used plastic to keep it from bonding and sticking. This tiny crane didn't have a scale. I had a 2200lbs limit at 147'. These piles should be 300-400 lbs. I stopped at what I guess was 1200-1300 lbs by the deflection. I'm reaching for the radio to tell the guy on the ground that it's stuck when it pops free and shoots over his head. This means the crane has just launched over six feet up and back too. I'm hoisting up and trolleying in to get away from the guy and then it was a ride it out scenario. Most new cranes have a scale and the guessing would be less. Using plywood instead of plastic is also a better solution.
In a climbing scenario where you are jacking cranes up, the winds are limited to 20 mph. We were at 14 and steady when we opened up to climb. We get 3 minutes into a 25 minute cycle and the winds start blasting us into the 40's. We are 800' up in the city. The tip of the crane is bouncing. We are pushing the limits of the brakes. The structure of the climber system must be in question. But there is nothing to be done but to complete it. I was in the seat of the crane. I've been at this for 20 years and it's the only moment I can remember sitting in the seat and feeling sweaty palms. It's just one of those nature doesn't care what you are doing moments.
We were erecting a crane that had a turntable bearing problem in 2004? The crane didn't want to turn. The speeds are controlled by steps. When you have just the counter jib on, you are really supposed to only be in first step to slowly come around. Nothing in first. Nothing in second. Third broke free and it was violent. The operator lets go of the control understandably and it comes to a stop that is just as violent. The reflections of energy in the tower kept us bouncing back and forth for five minutes. We eventually went for it and got it spun around. When the jib went on, it was more balanced and smooth. But they still took it down. I wasn't there for the dismantle. No tower lacings popped on that stop. But it was worse than an old swing brake test on the PECCO cranes that could get an 1/8th of a turn out of the towers when they were max free standing.
I've seen a couple of brake failures on tower cranes that weren't violent, but failures nonetheless. I saw a mobile crane go into freefall and the operator caught the 27,500 lb turntable as it started with the brake and nearly pulled the mobile crane into the hole. I still, 15 years later, can't believe that crane settled back down on it's outriggers. I was on the 225' tall tower of the tower crane and literally leapt from the outside of the tower for the inside of the tower to clear what appeared to be a mobile crane going over at us. Same day across town for our company, a load on a sister crane was dropped due to mechanical failure. 22,000 lbs fell 70' and planted into the street. There was an issue that ended up bringing in the manufacturer reps for those cranes to solve what was going wrong and trying to kill us.
One doesn't need to be afraid of cranes. There is no safety in fear if you are still in the area. Being aware and always placing yourself in a way that will allow you to save yourself is where you'll find safety. Irrational and reactionary thinking is what kills people after it all hits the fan. Mitigating the dangers due to being aware is the only thing you can do if you are around them. But all things normal, tower cranes are unbelievably safe if you manage them well. Take that climb at over 200% of the wind threshold and the structure remains intact. The models of cranes that I own have 1000's of examples of them in existence. I don't know of any of them going down due to a structural deficiency. It's almost always human error. When new cranes are commissioned, they often run a test of the structure to prove the safety. They'll load the crane to 100% of it's capacity, then blow the cable to fully test the structure. This used to be with the actual cranes. I've seen video of this being done to a Chinese crane recently. But it's now done in digitally through Finite Element Analysis by most manufacturers to find the weaknesses.
How's that for a wall of text on RUclips? I have lots of stories from 20 years of this.
@@rotyag that's alot of text 😅 also do you know what the whole point of having a normal tower crane and a luffing tower crane? I seen both alot lately and was wondering what's the difference between having those 2
@@ville__ I am long winded. So I have 16 tower cranes. Three are luffers. The luffers have a few benefits and challenges. The flat top or saddle jib tower cranes (common flat jibs) have trolleys that run at 300 feet per minute. Luffers take up an average of 2 minutes to luff up and down the full range. But if a neighbor doesn't want the crane to swing over their property, then a luffer can often avoid that legal battle or required pay off. Luffers can deliver more capacity as well. So the job really can have a scenario where they have a slower crane that can lift more weight and still end up being faster. But crane selection is often not that thought out. There are usually a few data points like capacity and price that drive it all. Japan, UK, and Australia are moving to nearly all luffers. They are more expensive. But property rights are the drivers in those locations.
Don't you get scared when the mast leans
I just started on a Potain MR605, it's a shorty at about 120' but I'd say perfect for someone who is new to tower cranes. After being operating hydraulic cranes for about 5 years, this was a big change. My biggest challenge was to learn to control the swing since it does not work as a hydraulic one.
I don't have any real time running hydro's. And I haven't ran 605's. I've inspected them, but not ran them. My experience with Potain's is that they are better off with a fairly rapid roll in and roll out. But it needs to be linear. It's been long enough that I don't recall how to easily get small smooth movements in the wind or while pouring concrete and staying ahead of the signal person. My brain is telling me that it's a rythmic throwing the bucket ahead and then chasing it like at a degree of swing at a time. I found that Potains took more time to learn how to smoothly horse around, but I ran a 310 that after a month I could full tilt it all of the time on all three functions under complete control. But it just wasn't as intuitive. Same with a MR295 luffer I filled in on for a week. Forgot about that vacation fill in.
@@rotyag thanks for the reply! I've watched all your videos, they are very helpful specially the one when you're working with the ironworkers. It helped me a lot when I first started running this crane because they would use the same lingo as the ones in the video (I think it's more of a west coast thing; they don't signal like that in the midwest). Hopefully you're still filling in for other operators so you can keep uploading content.
@@pipiligrama I am honestly pretty much never in a seat anymore. I started a tower crane company a few years back. I supply, erect, operate, and own other gear. I want to start doing videos on crane erecting. We put one up in 4 hours a couple of weeks ago. I want to show how that is possible. But then there are my competitive secrets... not sure what I will do with it. But I bought a bunch of new gear to start. Set up like four action cams at a time sort of thing and hire in a drone for the next time. Hoping to be able to do a crane in 3 5 hours soon. Small cranes.
@@rotyag that's awesome man!! best wishes on your company! Will be waiting for those erecting and dismantling videos!
Nice video love your videos I am a young operator who is signed up in the operating engineers local 3 and I am trying to get into the tower cranes I was wondering if there was any advice you could give to a young operator trying to get into that field of work
+The690ELC What state are you in with Local 3?
if your area will let you signal a crane, I would become a signal person. What happens is you want to get to know people that work in the tower crane world and let them know that you are looking for an opportunity to get a seat. Once people know and trust you, they will think of you. I had three offers within a week when I made it known that I wanted to stop erecting and start operating. You want everyone to know your name and your phone to be full of contacts for when you need that next seat.
If you know of a small tower going up, it really wouldn't be a tough transition from a mobile to a 100' tall tower with 145' of boom. I came from an ironworker background and literally got praise on my first live pick for a contractor. Working for a company that supplies operators to non-signatory sites is a good way to hone your skills with people who just want a moving hook. If you tried to go big first, you'll get run off. You have to step yourself up in size and expectations. Hanging iron from a 400' tall crane can be intense. Try wood construction first.
If you can get in training time and get the NCCCO Tower through your local, do it. Make sure your brain learns what the crane needs to be smooth and fast. Every crane is different. You can never be too smooth unless it's causing you to be slow. Tower crane operation is aggressive as you progress. But you can be too fast. If you are so fast and aggressive that you are having mishaps and no one can keep up, you have to tone it down.
When you get a seat, let me know. If I know the crane I'll pass along operational tips. If you get me a state, maybe I can find a contact for you to see if they know of an unfilled seat. I know some people in California and Hawaii.
Thank you for the advice I live in California and I have been on the waiting list for cranes there for almost two years it seems to be taking awhile for apprentices to be taken in. In the mean time I am operating dirt equipment and getting to know the responsibilities of what it means to operate a heavy piece of equipment. Through my job I have gotten to experience a little bit with rigging and signaling for smaller hydraulic cranes. Which has been a good start, But it is not at all to the scale as I want to be doing it at. If you could get me a seat or people to get in contact with that would be great. Also do u take pictures of the cranes you work in and other surrounding tower cranes in Seattle because i love the views that you have in your videos of your cranes and other tower cranes in the skyline. That is just a perspective that I don't ever get to see. And I love tower cranes so much that every time I see them in the cities I have to stop and take pictures of them as funny as that sounds.
+The690ELC I don't know how California's labor contracts work. I'm not looking to cause a fight, but... what happens up here is that the Operators get paid a few dollars less in benefits than ironworkers. So if you get a decent signalperson as an operator, the contractor saves a few bucks. Tell your business agent your goal and that you want to get into signalling. If you are willing to work hard and learn what they teach you, you'll be golden. Signalling becomes an easy job if you think ahead with it. Then when you roll back into the apprenticeship classes you make cranes the focus and eventually someone will open that door for you to walk through. You have to get your name out there in cranes. Signalling is the easiest door to open. Best of Luck!
sounds good thank you for the advice on everything you have been a huge help nice to hear from an operators perspective on things Best of luck to you as well and keep coming out with the videos they are fantastic
+rotyag So you need to be Working Iron and be Signaling in order to get a Chance to get some training!???
Can you just go to the Union, OR some Company Office and tell them You're Interested, and they'll Hook You Up Like A Crain?????
What Would Be The First Step To Get Into Tower Crain Operation In The State Of Texas!?????
What other Wolff models have you run?
226 and 325. Both from the 80's. The old Wolff's aren't safety compliant here so no one puts them out any more. Only rentals show up now and then. Swing is harsh on them. immediate and direct torque that is good or bad depending on your taste. Hoists can have a lot of run out if the eddy current isn't set up properly. Ladders are terrible. Angles cause me to hit my shins and the rungs are uneven between towers so if you don't pay attention it feels like you missed a rung. Pins connecting the towers can have the spring clips spin and try to back out or break off.
I hear good things about the new ones. I don't care for the old ones. Way oddball and lacking refinement in just about every way.
It's too bad you didn't get a chance to run the 224b that was in Seattle a year or two ago. Newer machine. I had it on the job before it was there, beauty machine to run.
Chris m I'll look forward to an opportunity to run something more modern. They do have a good reputation around the world.
So many differences between a modern rig,she looks tired & not a rig I'd want my jobsite depending on when I was still running jobs,I'm retired the last 5 years & haven't used a model that old on a job since the early 90's .
Would you believe that one was a 2001? It is in need of some care. I don't care for running old crane either. about ten years ago I ran one for a few weeks that was a 1965 model. I felt like I was just waiting for a structural failure. Pecco 1200. Controls were backwards. Only second speed on a three speed trolley. It was a challenge.
rotyag I can see that rig spent no time in the yard,looks like it went from job to job for all 16 years,you know its paid for itself 3 times over the way it looks.
It reminds me of an old 50 ton D Mag I got stuck operating back in the early 90's that another operator grounded out on a high voltage line,every time I'd use the hydraulics to open the clam the left outrigger would slowly rise off the ground & lock up,every lift I had to override the computer if that clam was being used ,cable speed in that damn thing was stuck in high too so every lift came in hot,shit like that wouldn't fly nowadays .
Was that Nuway's crane?
Yes Sir
So normally this boom would be...*WHACKK*
How to become a crane operator??
Typically you want to rig for a crane first. Most operators that never see it from the other side aren't empathic and they are garbage as operators. They'll be 20 years in and everyone below them is just surviving the ordeal. I've been under several hundred different operators because I was a tower crane erector. And within minutes I know what kind of operator I'm dealing with. Having had a variety of experiences allows me to adjust to personalities too. To that end, I'm highly recommending a couple of years below a hook. You could learn how to signal and rig in a couple of weeks. But you want to be proficient. The second step is training hours. I think NCCCO has hour requirements and passing a written test to take the practical. Certain cities and states also have stricter standards. Like in Washington you need 500 hours being trained by an operator. To put that in perspective, you can get a helicopter pilots license in 40. Let's be clear, that's union protectionism at play. So you'll need to check with your state rules. Some schools do trainings too. It's expensive. But it's a pretty good job if sitting in a box in the sky separated from everyone is for you. I loved it. I'm social, but also cool with not connecting with anyone. You'll have to gauge that aspect for yourself. I say it here specifically tying it in with the cost considerations of a school. It's the best choice to go through a union and get paid to learn if that's an option in your market.
Contact crane companies, tower crane companies, unions... You just pick up the phone and cold call. Most of us that were there are happy to take the call and let you know what we know about who is, or will be looking. It can feel like you are turned away because of you. It's really just what the market is doing the dictates it. Texas through the Carolinas is pretty busy right now. West Coast is a bit grim. Lots of Canada is doing well. Best of luck.