A lifting operation is not a single action. It is a sequence of changing conditions — each with its own requirements for observation, positioning, communication and guidance. The crane picks up. The load clears its support. It travels. It approaches the landing area. It descends. It lands.
At some of these stages, the suspended load requires no physical guidance at all. At others, it requires precise, carefully applied input from a defined working position. And at some stages, the most important action is to stop applying input and let the load settle.
The RiggerSafe® Engineering Method™ applies the same engineering framework to every stage of this sequence — from the moment before the load leaves its support to the moment it is fully landed and no longer capable of unintended movement.
Here is what that looks like in practice.
Stage 1: Before the Load Leaves Its Support
The guidance work begins on the ground — before the crane takes the weight.
This is the stage at which all guidance decisions should be made. The load is stationary and accessible. There is no suspended mass overhead. The time pressure that exists during the lift is absent.
At this stage, the lifting team should:
Study the load geometry. What shape is it? Where is the centre of gravity? What are the contact surfaces where a guidance interface can be applied? What movement is most likely once it is suspended — swing, rotation, drift, end amplification?
Predict the movement. Based on the geometry, the rigging arrangement, the suspended height and the travel path, what is the likely movement envelope? What guidance objectives will arise during each stage of the lift?
Identify the guidance objectives. For this specific lift, what will the rigger be trying to achieve at each stage? Maintaining orientation during travel? Preventing contact with adjacent equipment? Correcting rotation before the final approach? Final placement over locating pins?
Select the interface. Based on the guidance objectives and the required separation, what interface type and working length is needed? Is it the same throughout the lift, or does a different interface apply at different stages?
Establish the working position. Where will the rigger stand during the final approach? This position should be confirmed before the lift — not improvised when the load is overhead.
Brief the team. Crane operator, banks-person, rigging supervisor and any supporting riggers should all understand the plan before it starts.
The RiggerSafe® Guidebook states this directly: the best time to prepare is before the load leaves its support.
Stage 2: The Test Lift
Before committing to the full travel path, the load is raised a short distance — typically 100–300mm — and held there.
The purpose is engineering verification. Does the load hang level? Are all sling legs properly tensioned? Is there any unexpected rotation or tilt? Does the rigging arrangement match what was planned?
Problems identified at the test lift can be corrected with the load only slightly off the ground. The same problem discovered at full travel height is a significantly different challenge.
If the load does not hang as expected, the lift is paused, the issue is assessed, and the rigging is adjusted before travel continues. This is not a procedural formality. It is the engineering check that catches the conditions most likely to create guidance difficulties later in the lift.
Stage 3: Travel — Accompanying Without Interfering
During crane travel, the rigger accompanies the load — moving with it, observing its behaviour, maintaining the planned working position, and remaining ready to apply guidance if required.
The critical principle at this stage is observe before acting. A suspended load in travel may develop slight swing, minor rotation or gentle drift. None of these conditions necessarily require immediate intervention. The rigger should observe the load's response to crane movement and assess whether it is likely to self-correct, whether it requires a gentle input, or whether it has developed behaviour that needs to be addressed.
The EARO sequence — Engage, Apply, Release, Observe — governs how guidance input is applied at any stage:
- Engage: Bring the interface head into contact with the load at a suitable contact point
- Apply: Apply the minimum effective input — the smallest force that achieves the guidance objective
- Release: Remove the input once the correction has begun — do not sustain force beyond what is needed
- Observe: Watch the load's response before deciding whether another input is required
The release step is as important as the apply step. A sustained input that continues beyond the point of correction produces overcorrection. The EARO cycle is not a single action — it is a repeating loop that continues until the guidance objective is achieved.
Stage 4: Continuous Positioning Assessment
Throughout the travel phase, the rigger continuously assesses the load's position relative to the planned path and the working environment.
Four questions guide this assessment:
- Is the load on its intended path?
- Is it in a suitable orientation for the next stage?
- Is it maintaining safe clearance from adjacent structures and equipment?
- Is its movement envelope within the planned boundaries?
If the answer to any of these questions is no, the rigger applies guidance through the engineered interface — never by moving closer to the load or by applying force with the body.
If conditions change in a way that cannot be safely managed with the planned guidance method — unexpected environmental conditions, unanticipated load behaviour, equipment or personnel in the travel path — the correct response is to stop the lift and reassess. The load can always be landed in a safe intermediate position while the plan is updated.
Stage 5: The Final Approach
The final approach is the highest-risk phase of the lift. The load is close to its landing area. Clearances are reduced. The guidance requirements are at their most precise. The closing hazard zone is forming.
The RiggerSafe® Guidebook defines a seven-step sequence for the final approach:
- Confirm the working position. Move to the position established during pre-lift planning. Do not stand at the ends of the load. Do not stand within the closing hazard zone.
- Confirm communication. The crane operator, banks-person and guidance rigger must all have clear, agreed signals for this phase.
- Confirm the interface. The correct interface for final placement should be in hand and ready.
- Slow the crane. Final positioning requires slow, controlled crane movement — not travel speed.
- Apply guidance from the working position. Use the EARO sequence. Apply the minimum effective input.
- Confirm alignment before landing. If the load is not correctly aligned with its landing point, it should not be lowered further until the alignment is achieved.
- Confirm landing. The load is landed when its full weight has been transferred to the landing surface and it is no longer capable of unintended movement. Only then is the load safe to approach for rigging release.
Stage 6: The Almost-Landed Condition
The RiggerSafe® Guidebook specifically defines what it calls the almost-landed condition: the state in which the load is close to the landing surface but has not yet fully transferred its weight to it.
A load in the almost-landed condition is still suspended. It still possesses the energy of the lifting system. It can still move unexpectedly if the landing surface shifts, if the load rolls on its contact surface, or if the crane hook position changes.
Workers commonly treat the almost-landed condition as equivalent to the landed condition — the load looks stable, it is touching the ground, the tension in the slings appears to have reduced. But until the full weight has transferred and the crane has confirmed that the load is self-supporting, it remains a suspended load with all the associated hazards.
Rigging should not be released until the load is confirmed as fully landed and no longer capable of the movement associated with suspension.
The Sequence Is the Method
The purpose of planning every stage of the sequence — not just the final placement — is to ensure that by the time the load reaches its most hazardous phase, everything that should have been decided has already been decided.
Working position: confirmed. Interface: in hand and of the correct length. Communication: established. Landing alignment: planned. The final approach becomes an execution of a plan, not a real-time improvisation.
That is the engineering difference between managed guidance and improvised guidance.
Learn More
The RiggerSafe® Guidebook documents the complete lift sequence with worked examples, decision tables and the full EARO sequence application for each stage.
Request your copy at www.riggersafe.com
RiggerSafe® is a brand of PSC Hand Safety India Private Limited.