Had a talk with an old ironworker in Pittsburgh that made me rethink my signaling setup

I was on a job in downtown Pittsburgh last Tuesday and this grizzled ironworker named Joe came up to me after a pick. He said my hand signals were fine but I was relying too much on the radio and missing the little cues from the load, like how the cable sounds when it's getting close to max tension. It hit me different because he's been doing this since the 70s and he's probably seen a dozen accidents from guys who just stare at the radio instead of the boom.

4 comments

4 Comments

juliashah1mo ago

Used to think radios were the best thing since sliced bread but Joe totally changed my mind on that. Now I make sure to keep one ear on the radio and both eyes on the cable and load, it's a whole different deal when you pay attention to the little sounds and movements.

jake6381mo ago

Listen close for that high-pitched whine before the cable snaps. Saves your back every time. I run my hand along the load line on the way up too. Feel for any frayed strands or flat spots. One time I caught a kink forming that would've dropped a whole pallet of tile. Radio chatter is just background noise compared to what your fingertips pick up.

shanem3716d ago

I read that study they did on crane operators a few years back where they found most guys can pick up cable problems by sound alone way before any sensor catches it. The whine thing Jake is dead on about, same with running your hand up the load line. That high pitched sound changes pitch a little before a snap, almost like a guitar string tightening too much. I caught a frayed spot once on a 200 foot run just because my fingers felt a rough patch that looked fine to the eye. The radio noise kinda drowns out those small cues if you let it, so I keep my volume low and focus on the cable sounds first.

finleym4316d ago

Sliced bread ain't got nothing on a well-timed cable whine haha.