SignWeb | signweb.com

There is good news and bad news, benefits and drawbacks.

By Wade Swormstedt

On November 8, a new Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulation will go into effect that will impact many electric-sign companies. Those that use cranes with a maximum load-lifting capacity of more than 2,000 lbs. will need to comply with the federal regulations outlined in “Cranes and Derricks in Construction: Final Rule,” which means all such crane operators will need to be certified.
As suggested by the title, the impetus for this rule, eight years in the making, is the prevention of crane-related fatalities that have occurred in the construction industry. The sign industry, as typically happens with federal mandates, is being swept along with the requirements essentially intended for others.
For sign companies in 18 states and six cities, however, this is old news. According to the National Commission for the Certification of Crane Operators (NCCCO), California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Utah, Washington and West Virginia already have their own regulations. At the municipal level, Chicago, New Orleans, NYC, Omaha, Philadelphia and Washington, DC have their own standards.
Make the following URL a “favorite” on your computer: www.nccco.org. This site, for a certification company founded in 1995, contains a wealth of information and FAQs. NCCCO can provide both the training and the actual testing required for certification. It’s not the only company, but by far it’s the most prevalent.
The International Sign Assn. (ISA) lobbied OSHA for an exemption, explained Bill Dundas, ISA’s director of technical and regulatory affairs. Dundas, who used cranes himself for more than a quarter century, said, “ISA explained that the weight of items sign-company cranes typically hoist is significantly less than the loads commonly hoisted by cranes used in general construction operations. And with significantly less load weight, there’s less risk of overloading the equipment – a common cause of crane accidents. However, OSHA said electrocution from accidental contact with overhead wires is the main cause of crane deaths, and this applies regardless of a crane’s lifting capacity. Primarily, the fact that OSHA defines sign-installation work as a ‘construc¬tion’ activity dictated that the new rule would apply equally to sign-company cranes.” (Dundas will write an article about the OSHA regulations for the next ISA Report, which will appear in the November 2010 issue of ST. ST will also provide more information about these OSHA regulations in that issue.)
On the OSHA website, more than 1,100 pages are devoted to 29 CFR Part 1926; Proposed Rule 73:59713-59954. Included is the data from a Suruda study of crane-related construction deaths from 1984-1994, which says electrocution caused 39% of the 502 fatalities. You can also find the 108 definitions that accompany the rule.
But don’t panic. Yet. You get four years to comply.
However, some of the sign industry’s biggest compa¬nies have already needed to comply with state regulations. Dennis Lytle, the safety manager for Federal Heath, said training averaged five days and $1,300 “to train an operator who may never use the skills he is certified to perform.” He explained that the company’s MX and LV trucks seldom lift more than 150 lbs., but, because their capacity exceeds 2,000 lbs., “the operator will be required to have a license.”
Lee Swain of Swain Signs (Ontario, CA), who handles a significant portion of Federal Heath’s installations, lamented that, although all of his crane operators are now certified, none have ever been asked to show their credentials.
Paul Young, the executive vice president of YESCO (Salt Lake City), said more than 90 YESCO crane operators each spent approximately 30 hours preparing for, and taking, the written and practical exams at a cost of $900 to more than $2,000 each for outside test-preparation trainers and exams. He said much of the training upgraded operators’ skills, but crane operators also learned unnecessary details about such equipment as lattice and barge cranes. Young feels sign companies need to have better-trained crane operators and appreciates the training provided by ISA, “but because, as an industry, we didn’t do a better job, we are left to comply with these new OSHA requirements.”
Young added, “It’s unfortunate our industry couldn’t have its own training program.”
Dundas said ISA is currently working to develop a training program that would match OSHA’s operator-certification requirements. He said ISA’s goal is to train 1,000 sign people in 2011.
Darrel Wilkerson Jr., vice president at Wilkie Mfg. (Oklahoma City), a crane manufacturer, commented, “Safety is in everyone’s interest, but this is overkill. And OSHA didn’t seem to really want any feedback.” Although probably dozens of trades lobbied OSHA for exemptions, Wilkerson said he only knew that tree trimmers and towing cranes had received them. Wilkerson will contribute to ST’s coverage next month.