15.03.2013

Driving the snake

Nash Plant of Mittagong, New South Wales, Australia supplied a telehandler for a highly unusual application last month.

The company was approached by the city of Sydney last June, to supply a telehandler that could be dressed up as the Lady White Snake Serpent, a mythological half woman, half spirit who falls in love with a man, to lead Sydney’s 2013 Chinese New Year Twilight Parade.
Please register to see all images

Lady White Snake gliding through the streets of Sydney

The company took a close look at the brief, which required the telehandler to travel through the streets whilst a dancer performed in a platform attachment. Nash went through an intensive risk assessment, along with the Occupational Health & Safety team from the City of Sydney before selecting the machine, a 17 metre, 4,000kg Dieci Icarus 40.17.

The city originally wanted to use a smaller machine but given the elevation, extension and the platform, the team at Nash felt that anything less than the 40.17 would not work. Or at the very least would compromise safety.
Please register to see all images

The Dieci Icarus 40.17 makes makes an excellent snake bearer

The machine was fitted with a narrow platform attachment and a short lanyard harness was built into the dancer’s costume to make sure he remained in the platform in the event of any catapult effect or other unplanned incident. A rigging and height safety specialist was present for the parade along with two qualified Nash Plant safety observers, who kept contact with the telehandler operator via radio.

The company developed a detailed safety plan to action in the event of an emergency and numerous trials took place over the six months leading up to the parade, culminating in a series of rehearsals in the final two weeks. Whilst relatively simple from the machinery point of view, the job required considerable planning and communication with the city to meet its requirements for both aesthetics and safety.

In the event the two hour long parade went without a hitch and attracted and audience of around 100,000 to the area of George Street between Sydney Town Hall and then down into Chinatown. Over 3,500 performers took part in the show, the biggest and most diverse in the event's 17 year history.