A mobile service technician equipped with a mechanics truck and service crane is a very efficient means to maximize uptime. But there are precautions the service technician should follow to ensure safe lifts.

"Today's crane service trucks have evolved along with the technology of the 21st century to become an important component of increased work site safety," says Kyle Whiteis, Auto Crane. "When a piece of equipment breaks or needs routine maintenance performed on it, having a service truck and crane on site not only gives workers the option of performing maintenance or repairs in the field or back at their facility, it allows crews to conduct that maintenance in a safer way.

"Whether that worker removes a track and works on it at the site or removes a transmission and takes it back to the shop to be fixed, he can often avoid crawling underneath or through areas that are inherently dangerous to him," he adds. "The operator can move heavier objects to a place that is more favorable for providing service, keeping the mechanic out of the way, yet still close to the job, so the equipment can get back into service faster."

However, to ensure safe lifts, service crane operation requires a knowledge of the crane, load charts and the weight of the object to be lifted.

Understand load charts
"Load charts and the weight of the [lifted] objects are the whole key to lifting safely," says Walt VanLaren, Service Trucks International, manufacturer of Tiger Cranes.