what the hell is going on with cranes this year? we just had one fall at a refinery in houston this last weekend. where, who and when on these pics todd?

 I started on a crane and I can attest that there are people signaling cranes that have no business doing so.I notice on jobs many people that do not give the crane the respect it deserves.You must always keep the crane boom in mind and always have a route for escape.Do not ever "hang out" in a cranes danger zone,always know the point of where a boom will fall in case it does.NEVER stand under a load,if the crane is swinging over your pump,GET AWAY,even if the main man tells you it will be allright,stay away,even if it means shutting down the progress of a pour.A crane will not always come down directly in front of the machine,depending on what direction the torque is being applied it can fall in all 360 dgrees of the machine.

A major issue with cranes at the moment is with slew rings which includes availability and correct maintenance of them. These were the root cause for the accidents in New York and Houston. The crane in the above photos looks like a Sany, can't really make much of the photos.

Yes John it was,

Sany is smashing the competition.

Literally!