Additional tower crane safety measures are now mandated in Ontario. Amendments to the Occupational Health and Safety Act regulation for construction projects came into effect on Jan. 1, stipulating compliance with the most recent CSA standards for crane design, erection and dismantling and introducing new inspection requirements.

All components must now be inspected and verified to be operationally sound at 10-year intervals from either a crane’s manufacture date or its previous inspection. This includes examination of electrical, mechanical and hydraulic elements and control systems that can affect the crane’s structural integrity, stability and motion, as well as any non-structural components that may be vulnerable to cracking, damage or wear.

An engineer must oversee and confirm the validity of the inspection process, which is to be conducted by experts “with knowledge, training and experience that permits them to identify any defects and the appropriate actions to correct or repair the defect”. If repairs, overhauls or replacement parts are deemed necessary, an engineer or the equipment manufacturer must be on hand to instruct the work.

Inspections can be postponed if the 10-year anniversary of manufacture or the previous inspection occurs while a crane is operating on a construction site. However, once dismantled, they must be inspected before they can be erected for another project.