Still prefer the old friction brakes over these new disc systems

When I first got my Liebherr LTM 1050 back in 2018, an old operator named Jerry told me the LMI was just a fancy gadget that'd break on me. He swore by doing everything by feel and math on paper. Well, after a close call lifting a 12 ton HVAC unit onto a roof in downtown Austin, the LMI caught a load shift I didn't sense at all. Now I use it every lift but still keep a hand on the boom feel too. Anyone else have a tech feature that changed their mind?

4 comments

4 Comments

violar3526d ago

Read a study a few months back about how pilots get rusty when they rely too much on autopilot systems. Same thing applies to cranes, I bet. That gut feeling Jerry talks about is just your brain picking up on tiny vibrations and sounds the computer misses. But then you have situations like that Austin lift where the tech caught something a human never would have felt in time. Really wish manufacturers would focus on making the tech blend in smoother rather than these clunky add-ons that feel like an afterthought. What's the most overlooked safety feature on a crane in your opinion?

rowan96926d ago

Your mileage may vary on this one, but that old operator Jerry had a point worth keeping in mind. Those older friction brakes gave you a more direct feel for what the machine was doing, and that gut check is still valuable. The LMI catching that load shift is a solid argument for tech, no argument there, saved you a bad day for sure. But relying too much on sensors can dull your instincts over time, you know? Seen too many guys trust a readout that was off by half a degree because a sensor got bumped or the calibration drifted. Best approach is probably using both, but giving the old-school feel a little more weight than Jerry probably would admit.

susanb3426d ago

Funny you mention that @rowan969, my buddy Mike had a close call that proves your point exactly. He was running a brand new crane with all the bells and whistles, load cell, camera, the whole nine yards. The computer said his margin was fine, but something about how the boom felt made him stop and take a second look. Turned out a limit switch had gotten knocked loose by some debris off an earlier lift, and the readout was showing him a safety margin that didn't exist anymore. He told me he almost trusted that screen over his own gut, which is scary to think about. That old operator Jerry might come off as a dinosaur, but he's not wrong about your senses being the first thing to go when you lean on tech too heavy.

mark_carr77d ago

Yeah @rowan969 I've got the instincts of a houseplant so I'd probably end up trusting a broken screen over my gut too.