A day in the life of a crane operator

[Ultimaxification]

I didn't grow up on a farm, but I've seen careless crane operators. This is my calling.

[MrLanky2010]

every machinery operator grows up on a farm..

[galegregory97comcast]

well said , its a tuff job to do

[sexycooljulesverne]

is it a good job?

[kiblenime]

I'm an Automotive designer & i'm interested in designing an ejector seat for the tower crane operators out there...similar technology used for the air force jets...Just to give the operators a bit of a lifeline in case dissastor strikes and you need to check out real quick....lemme know how you feel lads.

[diggity433]

i was on that job hookin on haha



[mikeat88]

so its a diesel, now my question is where do you fuel it up at?

[d9andy992]

@mikeat88 the dogman conects u to a fuel tank that u lift off the back of a truck,then u lift it all the way up an a bit higher than the tower cranes fuel tank an usually gravity will fill the crane tanks,u have to pull the boom all the way back so the fuel tank is above the crane,then fill her up

[mikeat88]

@d9andy992 ive run cranes most all my life but its all been crawlers and all terrain cranes. never run a tower crane so i just got to thinkin ive never seen it done...

[backhoeguy410]

whats with the hardhat?? lol

[ForTheWynn]

@backhoeguy410 safety first...everyone on a construction site is dictated to wear hardhats.

[jakegamesnake]

God bless america!

[PrickfrOmh3LL]

I operate one too,but sometimes people do not stand still with the risks we are taking every day,we can kill people simply by letting our attention go for 10 seconds or less,i just looked up this vid to show to someone on facebook what kind of job i do, and this is a really nice crane!The crane I (currently) operate is about 150 meters high, donno howmany feet thats is to be honest. But we move all across the country(Belgium),and the hight of the crane depends on what we are building of course.

[torenkraanmachinist1]

look this

torenkraanbediening.hyves.nl

or mine tube

[YaterSpoon86]

So what you gotta hump some stairs for a better view. You're a fuckin lever puller same as the rest of us lever pullers. You just got a better veiw rookie. Walks like a rook, sounds like a rook, must be a FUCKIN ROOKIE!.

[YaterSpoon86]

Nice Kevlar hard hat to mark the body. Dumbass.

[Chrisguy42O]

IS THERE MUCH WORK FOR CRANE OPERATORS?

[bigearl150]

Its an awesome job!!! I've grown up around these machines my whole life with my dad being a crane operator for 30+ years.... But I was lucky enough to start running tower cranes when I was 21 years old.... And proud to say I hold the record in Austin, tx for the tallest crane... I was running a 561 comidel at 800 ft.... It was really fun and I learned alot from that job.

[zackdabeastable]

damn hilbillys -_-

[merlinchanelle]

RESPECT

[koringn]

wanna have a bloody good doger in that job.

[ReconBag]

thinking of becoming a crane operator, just wish they had ejection seats when something goes wrong rofl

[87yandi]

looks  much older dan that

[hughtub]

I want to see Dubai crane operators.

[Irnwkr28]

As long as i can have a pistol to blow my brains out when an earthquake hits and the tower crane starts pulling away from the building because the supports that hold the crane on the building start to give out and the crane is falling backwards to the ground. Those seats they sit in should have an ejection switch like in a F-16 jet. When that crane starts to fall you pull a lever and you shoot out the cab of the crane a couple hundred feet before a parachute comes out lol.

[jennemen]

you would be deaf after a day's work

[Sophanna71]

@jennemen  are you a tower crane operator?

[svenzia]

Good video- thanks for sharing

[Hahren]

Imagine sitting in there, just doing your job. But the object you're trying to lift is too heavy and your crane falls over forward.. :D

[awkgah]

@Hahren imagine u r sitting up there and an earthquake hits ..how wobbly wud it be, . i cnt do this job in a million years .

[1smokinLesPaul]

@ carsieplg. It sounds like you prove yourself all day, every day as well. And at 28 years old you have achieved the status where you get hired on your reputatiuon as well. I don't understand what your fuckin problem is or where your anger comes from ? We're both in the same boat, we just came up differently. I didn't grow up on a farm, but will be the first to admit my brothers that have are among the best operators I have ever seen.

[MajorYT]

They should put a camera the top and control it from the ground. This is the modern world! Why are they still risking their lives going up there?

[carsieplg]

@MajorYT its not the same as having a man up above in the cab its ok for smaller cranes where you can see every last bit of the site i feel much safer as a banksman with somebody in the cab who can feel the movement get the wind speed read out many different sensors and alarms limit switches there are more chances of something going wrong without a good operator in the cab

[MajorYT]

@carsieplg That's true but we have to be forward looking and not just support this unsafe job all the time. Technology is so advanced, wind speeds can be on the screen on the ground just like in the cockpit of a modern airliner.

[sdb4001k]

i would shut this unsafe job down.....

[44971719785648751978]

@sdb4001k then whos going to build you builing? mm lol

[bodryn]

I'd say you gotta be in pretty good shape just to climb up and down every day. Oh, and is there a bathroom handy up there?

[Mshoister1]

Dude I didn't see you check the oil!

[velisarios2]

Dificult job!!!

[GameSharkWizard]

Cool.

[1smokinLesPaul]

2xnkote, you can pay for a training course but those are meant to get you ready for a test, period. Nothing compares to the experience of doing an apprenticeship under seasoned crane operators. I did a four year apprenticeship and have been a journeyman for 8 years. I will be the first to admit that my crane license means I was good enough one time. We have to prove ourselves all day, every day.

[vontrop]

@1smokinLesPaul do you know what he meant when he said "you need 2000 hours" ?

who asks for 2000 hours?

[carsieplg]

@1smokinLesPaul we prove ourselves everyday hahaha what a load of pish at age 28 its my reputation that gets me work the only time my ticket needs looked at is when its running out i get hired through name alone i am a heavy plant operator have been from 11 years but from i was a kid i operated forklifts diggers self erecting cranes at the farm just down the road from me over my time on site ive seen many time served journeymen come on site who are a danger to everyone around them

[ManOfMeans]

"A day in the life of a crane operator"

Huh, was there anyone else here thinking they were gonna see a video of a bird phone operator?

[zipperator]

Nice Video!!!

[jkellyjojo]

tis a lonely job, i must have a fetish cos i gotta load of questions about crane construction and the life, just find it interesting i guess

[hufkin]

It is interesting for me to see life from the other side of the pond. I have never heard of a diesel tower. I have driven towers here in the UK for five years and worked as a bankman on and off in that time too...the team work between slinger and operator are vital...if you get a an op and slinger who are good the job will fly. Life here is getting bone now though as everyone is screwing the rates...my slinger is on £8.50 per hour which is a disgrace...

[murdie65]

that looks scery

[DocthaRoc]

Can someone get an apprenticship with a local IUOE with no mechanical experience.

Can anyone who wants to learn be trained to operate a crane.

[Dillonfromforks]

Yes. That is how I did it

[DocthaRoc]

Thank you for your response...

I live on the east coast and will apply to the local union in the spring..

Is there anything I should prepare for specfically to have a chance. Any advice u could share is appreciated.

[Dillonfromforks]

Not really. Just go there with a "Union" attitude. They'll test you on Math. And you will probably have to take a physical and get a doctors approval that you are physically fit enough to sit in a seat and pull levers all day. They will also drug test you before they accept you so if you smoke any dope I advise quitting.

[DocthaRoc]

"Union" attitude Got cha..thanks for the detailed response.

[2xnkote]

you can probably pay to do a training course

[4gavan]

The disconnect.

One thing about this video he started a DIESEL ENGINE with noise from the crane platform. Who would hear it and put it on tape?

This is not allowed.

All he could have said we are testing are 420 in case the crkt goes down to run on Electric.

[4gavan]

Pigeons and other birds are lucky to piss and shit at 100 ft.

My point is to drop a cup of water at 200 ft.

3/4 of it's liquid content evaporates totally at 150 ft.

[4gavan]

Take a crap at 200 ft and tell me what it looks like.

At 200 ft on a non humid day it lands like sand.

The shit and piss get's absorbed after a free fall speed of 150 ft. Now the shit is traveling at 138 miles per hr after a 100 ft.

Nobody sees the shit.

[4gavan]

You think They worrie about how they piss and shit at 200 + feet in the air? Who cares.

They have a porta pot in the cab. If not the Urine evaporates before it hits the ground and the shit is like a big seagull.

[4gavan]

This is a very good video.

He understood the importance of a hard wire communications and other systems within the dangers of this trade. The operator of the crane said, " often radio links fail."

These operations use all the communication they can afford.

The best they use is real older technology like the miners use but it's not old. It's fail safe and often redundant.

[eddieoe12]

in cali crane operators pay varies, if your a non union rat, you may make up to 30 an hour, union operators are over 41 an hour, depends on the type, size and boom length the bigger the crane the more you get paid

[Dillonfromforks]

I am 24 years old and I am a 1st year Operating Engineer Apprentice in the Local 302 Operating Engineers. 1st year operators make $23.37 an hour right now. I operate a P&H 90 ton Truck mounted crane with 140 feet of Lattice boom and 30 feet of Jib. When I Journey out in a few years I will be certified in Tower and Truck Cranes as well as Gantry and will be able to work anywhere in the world through my Union making upwards of $40-$90 an hour depending on the length of boom or height of Tower.

[giovanigta]

Ive been operating p&hs for 11 years now75 ton hydro -90-140-conventional there good machines

[brycepaulwelder]

When we have to shit we climb down but we piss in bottles lol

[haodi13]

anybody know what happen if they wanna shit in the cabin does they do it in a bag ?

[haodi13]

anybody know how they pee or shit in a small operator cabin ?

[eddieoe12]

i've heard many stories but all the operators i know piss in a bucket or bottle, i've heard of some operators shitting in buckets too, but i heard that on some towers they stick a shitter up there, i don't know how true that is cos i don't know how much room is available up there for one or how they would get it down for cleaning. i'm not a tower crane operator just a moble crane operator, i help build them and tear them down. i won't operate them.

[Ancient2008]

im joining the national guard just to do this. I can't wait :D it's said that Crane OPs make about 30$+ an hour in Cali, is that true?

[HatfulofHollow65]

Respect to you guys who do this job, what a great but difficult  job. I certainly couldn't do it, I don't like heights for one thing. Top of a telegragh pole is my limit!

[hoytusa09]

Another problem is when your working in the blind and you have to trust you signal man!! But if he don,t know his shit ! He can make a operator look like shit real fast!!! All signal men are going to be certified someday, But not soon enough!! I have to be. I'm a operator. Why haven't signal men been tested????

[vego1986]

hard to hear anything in this movie but anyway good job i`m gonna be crane operator too ( someday )

[cm79ca]

He's cute!!!!! Is he single???

[steveeaa]

Kudos to farm kids. Me SD. I run a tower in IL and it's no BS. Steel erection IS an art. It's hard to go fast AND not fuck up. Anybody can go fiddlefuck around and get a few done. You have to be committed and not party every night too...I'm setting precast right now and it's all heavy. That's different too.

You're a good guy.

[dx5195]

Hy there, a few asked what it is fr a crane, and how it´s powered. The crane must be a Link Belt or Cornell. Cornell bought the rights to construct this cranes from Link Belt. The crane is diesel powered, that´s

common in the US and in Australia. Here in Germany tower cranes are powered by electricity, that´s common in the other European countrys, too. As far as I know Cornell is out of business today.

[Idigindirt]

Cornell is still in buisness and has 2 tower cranes working side by side setting steel for the new John Jay criminal justice school in NYC

[dx5195]

Thanks for the info. This are interesting machines for me because they are so different from the european cranes.

[Jagosze]

setup looks like a link belt

[Diabolikal01]

2:12.....what a beautiful picture

[LiebherrR944BRH]

Pas mal , c'est bien fait !

[bobtul]

noise in the cab sounds horrendous

[tmreed]

I like that crane. Who designed it?

[ThaLargeOne]

Phil Harmon, nice video bro,

and for you jackasses giving critics ;

Looking at your sites i see no crane operating vids just rubbish.

If you got so much to say about Phil at least have the courage t show some of your work.

As for blind lifts, the people working under you would probebly judge everyone of your lifts as a blind lift, or whats wrong with this guy lifting is he blind or what !

[tms870]

the practicle cco test is a joke @least in az all i did here is load control which is one of the easier crane manuvers...set up is huge building up on 6plus layers of cribbingis tricky..without proper setup everything else including load controll is out the window

[spudsin150]

im a crane operator in the city of chicago this is pretty good with one exception...ncco is a piece of cake guys take the ncco class and pass in a week with their certitfication...all these accidents you've been hearing about those operators are ncco certified if their certified at all. here in chicago you have to be certified through the local union and the city of chicago thats why you don't have as many accidents and those are rarely operator error better operators and better trained..

[97forMulaWs6]

is it like that in all of IL or just chicago,iam schooling in GA right now for 3 weeks and hope to get a job when i get out, i live 1/2 hour away from STL any info or advice would help thanks

[ShermanM1]

it works with diesel?

[Ladybugz85]

Wow! I have talked to people who have operated cranes, but i have never got feedback from someone who talked while they were operating a crane. Cool!

[Ladybugz85]

Wow! I have talked to people who have operated cranes, but i have never got feedback from someone who talked while they were operating a crane. Cool!

[mextina13]

yo how much do they get paid nfmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm­mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmjaanoavanaonvfj­dankan

[malcolmyoung90]

I enjoyed this documentary. Out if interest, where was the crane manufactured? 

It seemed very noisy in the cabin when the crane is rotating.

[addicted2paint]

Yes! I agree. Since he spent several years in Kansas City and failed to mention it, I have worked on cranes he has been on in K.C. I could tear his commentary up!!!! He should go back to farm tractors, like a Cub Cadet!!! Gotta love our Cass County Phil. So why did he move to Vegas???? Oh Yeah.... all the ironworkers in local 10 have broken hands from the hooks cushioning the blows. Diesel fired rigs are the best! Ha! Yeah right!!!!!!! Anyways good luck Phil.

[meathead1512]

your banksman or what ever you call them in the usa is there to help you when your that high up.. you drive a crane, get over your self!!

[addicted2paint]

I agree with you. That is what the operator does is listen and pull levers as told. As well it should be smooth and calculated.

[baubaul]

I also agree with you.Obiovsly he didin't do any blind lifts in those 20 yrs of cranedriving if he's taking a such a piss at the slingers.I had my slinger ticket for 6 months, but all the cranedrivers I've worked with have been very helpful with me even giving me some tips.Should be a common respect between the crane driver and the banksman

[baubaul]

I also agree with you.Obiovsly he didin't do any blind lifts in those 20 yrs of cranedriving if he's taking a such a piss at the slingers.I had my slinger ticket for 6 months, but all the cranedrivers I've worked with have been very helpful with me even giving me some tips.Should be a common respect between the crane driver and the banksman

[mikelq]

Yeah Rob391, why DO you say that? Why don't you validate this serious criticism with some facts...or do you just have a personal problem with this guy.

[addicted2paint]

I'll back up Rob391 in a heartbeat. If you have worked under the hooks of this guy you too would understand his criticism.

[maworeb]

But he has been doing it a long time, why do u say that?

[addicted2paint]

Just because you do something a long time doesn't make you good at it. Have you ever rigged a load for this guy? I have and agree with previous comments....even mine.