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CONSTRUCTION KNOWLEDGE  >> CONVEYING SYSTEMS >>

MATERIAL MOVERS
 


 

1. What are the Basics of Rigging?
2. What Should I Know about Hoists and Cranes?


What are the Basics of Rigging?


To pay my way through college, I worked as a roadie in the rock and roll business. On the Bruce Springsteen 1978 tour I also worked as the ground man for the rigger. He'd climb up on the roof beams and girders, dropping me a rope. I'd tie a knot connecting the rope to cable harnesses and then to a chain hoist. Then the rigger would pull up the cables and chain, connecting them to the beams. The chain climbing 2 ton hoists would then lift our speakers and amplifiers 20 to 30 feet into the air.

I vividly recall the first time I had to climb down that 30 feet, trusting a knot I'd recently learned to tie. As I slipped off the edge of the hanging platform I thought, "I'm trusting my life to that knot I just tied." I loved learning the basics of knots and rigging.

The Canadian Sea Cadets have an excellent training course for practical knots and the basics of rigging. I encourage you to learn these helpful skills, you'll use them in other areas of your life. It's just nice to be competent in practical matters. The General Technical Knowledge area of this website provides an even deeper understanding of simple machines.


 

What Should I Know about Hoists and Cranes?


Many industrial buildings need hoists to lift materials in the manufacturing or assembly process. A hoist lifts or lowers a load by wrapping the drum or wheel with chain, wire rope or rope. There are manual hoists, electric hoists and air powered hoists. Hoists normally lift loads vertically from one location (providing one dimensional, up-down type movement).

Cranes, on the other hand, have the ability to move the hoist so the load can be lifted vertically and moved horizontally. A jib crane has a horizontal member that connects to a wall or vertical column. The hoist is mounted on that horizontal member. The horizontal member may also swing to provide additional lateral movement of the load. A gantry crane has a hoist mounted on a trolley. The trolley and hoist move horizontally on a beam, able to lift a load and move laterally (providing two dimensional movement).

Traveling building cranes allow a load to be lifted and moved in three dimensional space. The gantry crane (a hoist with a trolley on a beam) gets mounted on another set of trolleys which allow the gantry crane to move in the other direction. The traveling cranes allow the most flexibility for lifting and moving loads.