At some time or another, you have seen tower cranes towering over a construction site. These are referred to as tower cranes, much as the appearance implies. They can lift as much as 19 tons and can reach as high as 265 feet. Operating a tower crane requires a lot of skill because the safety of an entire neighborhood could lie in the hands of the tower crane operator. Tower cranes are used to lift generators, large pieces of steel, and large air conditioning units among other larger and heavier items needed to construct a large building.

How Is A Tower Crane Constructed?

Tower cranes are constructed on a large and heavy concrete pad. The crane’s base is secured onto the support pad with heavy-duty bolts. The concrete pad is necessary for stability and the construction process. The pad is poured weeks before the construction process begins. The pad could be as large as 30 feet by 30 feet, can be as much as 4 feet thick, and weigh as much as 400,000 pounds. The large tower that reaches into the sky is referred to as the mast. On top of the mast is the slewing unit, which is the mechanical component that allows the rotation of the crane. The jib is a long arm extending from the crane, and the machinery arm is a shorter arm.

It can take up to a dozen tractor-trailers to haul in all the components for the tower crane. Mobile cranes are used to assemble the jib, the slewing unit, and the counterweights. The crane is grown from the base up using a climber to lift the topmost part of the crane with the jib, slewing unit, and machinery arm to allow the mast’s latticework to slide in, which the tower crane does itself using the jib. The lattice is secured then the process is repeated with the climber.

Training For Tower Cranes

If you are interested in a career in operating tower cranes, call the team at ATS Training School today.

Have you ever looked up at those huge tower cranes and thought that you would like to be a crane operator? From the ground, you imagine what it must be like moving giant loads around from such a height, but what is it really like?

The day starts early, checking the weather for an idea of the conditions because for tower crane operators, the weather matters. In particular, the wind is the thing that operators are particularly interested in, because high up, wind can have a dramatic effect on the load as it is hoisted and positioned.

Tower cranes are also very much a team effort, the riggers and spotters work with the operator on every lift, and it is the team as a whole working together that makes for a safe operation. So, on-site, the team will meet and discuss the day’s planned work, going over the previous day and noting anything that didn’t work as it should, and how to avoid that issue again.

Then, it’s the long climb up, but the climb itself is also an opportunity to inspect the crane, looking for loose bolts, bad connections, damage or anything else that could cause an issue. The theme with crane operating is safety, both for the operator and for everyone around them. Once in the cab, the operator is on their own, communicating with the team via radio and perhaps taking a phone call or two, but otherwise, an operator is in the cab for 10 hours a day on their own.

It’s busy in the cab though, with lifts of all kinds going on, and every single one requiring real concentration, safety is always at the core of everything being down, taking directions from spotters and riggers, but ultimately, it’s the crane operator that decides the route for the lift. There is a lot of responsibility as a crane operator, and for many, that is part of the attraction. It’s also a rewarding career, with $100,000+ a year wages being an attraction.

For those who are attracted to it, whether it is the self-sufficiency of being alone in the cab, the idea of working closely with a team or the responsibility of organizing lifts, or maybe just the idea of a good paycheck, high-quality training is essential to acquire the skills and qualifications needed to safely operate a tower crane.

We have exceptional experience training tower crane operators, our course includes both classroom and site training, and prepares you for the National Commission for the Certification of Crane Operators (NCCCO) exams that give you the certification needed to build a successful career as a tower crane operator.

Tower cranes can be huge and, in most cases, cannot be moved under their own power. In fact, almost all tower cranes are nothing more than giant Meccano sets with each crane put together on site. Anything up to a dozen flatbed trailers are used to bring in all the parts, all carefully laid out and ready for assembling. Who does the grunt work? Mobile Cranes.

It has to be one of the most interesting jobs on a work site. Slowly lifting each piece of a giant Meccano set into place while riggers and engineers slowly build that tower crane. Of course, when the job is done, it will require another mobile crane to come in and slowly take the tower crane apart again. With some large construction sites taking up to 12 months (and longer) to complete, operators and workers rely on that tower crane to be perfectly put together.

That is only one role of a mobile crane, and a challenging one at that. Wherever there are heavy objects that require lifting, you’re likely to find a mobile crane. Mobile cranes range in size from fairly small vehicles to large vehicles that equal or exceed the length of many semi-trailer rigs. Because of their size, mobile crane operators are also required to hold a commercial drivers license (CDL).

Mobile crane operator training can be undertaken over three weeks. This will provide operators with the skills and knowledge for entry-level work as mobile crane operators. In today’s workforce, crane operators are also required to undertake a certification process that demonstrates their knowledge of cranes, particularly when it comes to safety knowledge and the safe operation of a crane. If building tower cranes from giant pieces of Meccano appeals to you, consider undertaking crane operator training – the pay’s good and the work is always challenging.