ICSA issues crane safety guidance

Three new, much-anticipated guidance papers for the mobile crane industry will be published soon after the final drafts were approved at the annual meeting of the International Crane Stakeholder Assembly in April.

All three papers deal with different safety issues and represent the culmination of two years’ detailed work and discussion involving experts from around the world.

The three titles are:

- ICSA Guidance Paper 001 (2^nd Edition): Leaving mobile cranes unattended in (partially) erected mode

- ICSA Guidance Paper 002: Lifting a load with several mobile cranes (multiple cranes or tandem lifting)

- ICSA Guidance Paper 003: Lifting persons with mobile cranes.

Held in Munich, Germany, during the Bauma exhibition, the ICSA meeting was hosted jointly by the Fédération Européenne de la Manutention (European Federation of Materials Handling, FEM) and the European Association of Abnormal Road Transport and Mobile Cranes (ESTA). It brought together 19 participants from eight countries representing industry users and manufacturers from around the world.

Work on the three reports was initiated by FEM. They will be published on the websites of FEM, ESTA, Specialized Carriers and Rigging Association (SC&RA) and the Crane Industry Council of Australia (CICA).

“What makes these guidance papers so important – and so strong – is that they bring together worldwide knowledge and expertise,” said Søren Jansen, ESTA director. “I think they are great documents and will help the industry raise our standards further.”

Jansen added: “ESTA has been really proud to be part of this process, along with our colleagues from FEM, SC&RA, AEM and CICA.”

ICSA’s role is to be a platform for crane industry stakeholders to share information on safety, technical and regulatory issues and promote the harmonisation of international standards. The assembly’s members are AEM, CICA, ESTA, FEM and SC&RA.