Crane contact with pipelay tower resulting in dropped object

What happened

A crane made contact with a pipelay tower handrail during a routine lifting operation, resulting in a serious dropped object event.  There were no injuries.  The incident occurred during repositioning of a chain link clump weight on the main deck using a 250T crane whip line. The boom rest landing section on the boom knuckle came into contact with the top gutter walkway guardrails on the pipelay tower. A section of the rail (approx. 1.2 m and 5.5kg) broke off and fell approximately 22m to a walkway below.

What went wrong?

This incident is currently under investigation however the following preliminary findings were identified:

• There was a lapse in concentration due to distractions during the operation;
• The banksman was primarily focused on the load and its travel path rather than on the crane itself;
• The crane operator’s view was obstructed by the knuckle boom;
• The crew were new to the vessel:
  • There was a lack of awareness of possible clash points and were not highlighted in the deck induction;
  • The crew were not familiar with the vessel set-up when working in close proximity to tower;
• There was an unidentified hazard (i.e. deck structure clash points);
• There were no engineering controls to warn the crane operator of close proximity to a structure.

Our member notes that further actions will be communicated on conclusion of the investigation.

Actions/discussion points

• Are we out of the line of fire? Discuss what key controls you have in place to remove yourself and your team members from the potential line of fire;
• Ensure drop zones are identified for any potential clash points when performing lifting operations in close proximity to other structures or equipment;
• Ensure there is a robust and effective barrier management process used to manage all drop zones;
• Ensure all potential crane collision points are identified and included in worksite inductions, toolbox talks and risk assessments;
• Where applicable, ensure additional ‘spotters’ are used to assist the banksman.

Members may wish to refer to:

• Provisions Crane damaged by Main Deck Crane
• High potential LTI: rigger ear injury
• Reliance on crane limits caused crane damage and dropped objects
• Crane hydraulic hose caught on protruding grease fitting