Deficiencies in the electrical systems of portable tower cranes at construction sites

Abstract

Tower cranes are a common fixture at any major construction site. The
assembly of tower cranes as well as their maintenance and operation
can be the source of important risks for the workers. However,
research work carried out in this field is mostly based on the analysis
of information from work accident reports, rather than the monitoring
of actual working conditions at operating construction sites.
• The objective of this research study is to identify and detect frequent
deficiencies in the electrical systems of portable tower cranes during
the implementation phase of construction work. The results will be
conducive to establishing a set of corrective measures that can be
implemented by project designers, installers, maintenance experts,
users, and government agencies. For this reason we inspected 110
portable tower cranes at various construction sites. The data was
collected and recorded on an ad hoc checklist. It was then analyzed
and statistically treated with the software application SPSS.13 for
Windows. The principal elements or variables where deficiencies were
most frequently detected were the following: (i) documents certifying
the existence of a maintenance contract, (ii) electric control box, (iii)
control pushbutton panel, (iv) ground lead. Any defect in these
elements is potentially the source of a high risk situation because of
the serious consequences that can ensue. The detection of such
defects at constructions sites signifies that the installations are
defective and thus unsafe. Ground leads along with non-conforming
differential switches are extremely dangerous, and constitute a high
risk factor that must be controlled and eradicated through the joint
efforts of all agents involved.