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Pro tip: Check your swing radius before you start rigging
Lost half a day on a job in Portland last Wednesday because I assumed the swing radius was clear. Took 3 hours to reposition a 50 ton Grove crane around a buried storm drain I couldn't see. Has anyone else had a site survey miss something obvious like that?
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white.keith3mo ago
Buried storm drain I couldn't see" is the story of my life, just with different obstacles. Lost a morning once to an old septic tank a survey missed, and the only reason I found it was because my rig sank six inches into soft ground. Turns out paying someone to mark things is just an invitation to find out what they missed.
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the_lucas3mo ago
Man, that's brutal. Losing half a day to something like that really stings, especially on a big crane like a 50 ton Grove. I've had survey teams miss shallow utilities before, always feels like you're the one who pays for their mistake.
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davidshah3mo ago
Three years ago I'd have said it's on us to double check everything before we start swinging steel. But last spring I had a survey crew mark a 4 inch water line two feet off from where it actually was on a hospital parking lot job. If I hadn't called for a vac truck to dig a test hole we'd have ripped that pipe right out with the first bucket. Now I don't trust any utility marks until I see the actual dirt.
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