Site and Lift Planning
Site and Lift Planning
Boom-truck work begins before the outriggers are set. The exam tests whether you can turn a customer request into a controlled lift: identify the load, establish pick and set points, measure radius, choose boom length, and prove capacity at every point in the path. A usable plan also covers ground bearing, overhead lines, swing clearance, traffic control, weather, and the people who rig, signal, and receive the load.
Core rules
- Determine gross load: load + slings + shackles + hook block + jib or attachments + trapped material. Use verified weights; do not guess from volume.
- Plan at the maximum radius and worst quadrant, not just the final set point.
- Walk the path: boom deflection, tail swing, counterweight swing, and load drift can change clearance.
- Treat a lift near chart capacity or over people/occupied areas as critical under the employer’s lift plan; require engineering or management review as the plan specifies.
- Confirm soil, underground utilities, and outrigger pad size before positioning.
Worked example
A load weighs 8,000 lb. Slings and shackles weigh 500 lb; hook block 300 lb; stowed jib deduction required by the chart is 200 lb. Gross = 8,000 + 500 + 300 + 200 = 9,000 lb. At the planned 25 ft radius the chart gives 12,000 lb. Utilization = 9,000 ÷ 12,000 = 75%. That is at a common critical-lift trigger, so the lift needs the higher-level review your site plan requires even though the chart is not exceeded.
Traps
Using bare load weight instead of gross load; planning only the set point; ignoring a stowed jib deduction; assuming an “on outriggers” capacity applies when beams are short-jacked.