Month: June 2025

Effective site supervision is a critical success factor in ensuring the safety, efficiency, and legal compliance of crane activities on construction sites. Supervisors are the eyes and ears on the ground, translating safety plans into daily action and maintaining control over dynamic and often high-risk lifting operations. According to Hong Kong’s Factories and Industrial Undertakings (Lifting Appliances and Lifting Gear) Regulations (Cap. 59J), the Code of Practice for Safe Use of Tower Cranes, and the CIC Guidelines on Safety of Tower Cranes, site supervisors carry key responsibilities in coordinating personnel, monitoring procedures, and enforcing safe systems of work.

In the high-risk world of tower crane operations, the presence of a qualified safety officer is not only a legal requirement under Hong Kong’s construction regulations but also a critical safeguard for managing operational hazards and promoting a proactive safety culture. The Factories and Industrial Undertakings (Lifting Appliances and Lifting Gear) Regulations (FIU LALG), the Code of Practice for Safe Use of Tower Cranes, and the CIC Guidelines on Safety of Tower Cranes all outline specific responsibilities that safety officers must fulfill to ensure the effective implementation of safety measures throughout the life cycle of crane operations—from installation and use to climbing and dismantling.

A method statement is a critical safety document that outlines, in step-by-step detail, how a specific high-risk activity—such as a crane lifting operation—will be executed in a safe, planned, and controlled manner. In Hong Kong, developing a proper method statement is a legal requirement under the Factories and Industrial Undertakings (Lifting Appliances and Lifting Gear) Regulations (FIU LALG) and is considered best practice under the Code of Practice for Safe Use of Tower Cranes and the CIC Guidelines on Safety of Tower Cranes. For lifting operations, particularly those involving tower cranes, mobile cranes, or tandem lifting, a comprehensive method statement helps prevent accidents, manage site risks, and ensure that all stakeholders understand their responsibilities.

Risk assessment is the cornerstone of safe crane operations on construction sites. Whether it involves a tower crane, mobile crane, or derrick, lifting operations inherently involve hazards that must be identified, evaluated, and mitigated before work begins. In Hong Kong, the requirement to perform a site-specific risk assessment is mandated under the Factories and Industrial Undertakings (Lifting Appliances and Lifting Gear) Regulations (FIU LALG) and emphasized in both the Code of Practice for Safe Use of Tower Cranes and the CIC Guidelines on Safety of Tower Cranes. Conducting an effective risk assessment not only ensures compliance