23.01.2004

A web site for crane drivers

A few weeks ago a new web site was brought to our attention, which is full of interesting features on crane operation and safety tips with a strong interaction element. The site is principally for crane drivers to discuss crane topics and seek advice and information on all sorts of topics from safety to rigging older units.

With the name 'Lifting World', we were taken-in by the site's aims so we did some digging and the background and story behind to the site was almost as fascinating as the site itself.

The owner and 'Webmaster' is Terry Duxbury, a crane driver invalided out of the industry in 1998 after a very bad accident

Terry was born in Hammersmith, West London, in the early 50’s and now lives near Boston in Lincolnshire. He became a crawler crane diver in 1974, when driving such a beast still required all sorts skills and knowledge that a modern day driver would find totally incredulous and unaccepta.

He drove well-known and loved machines such as the NCK Andes, Atlas and Penines, (how much more romantic these names seem today compared to the Alpha-numerical tags of today!). These were cranes for real men with clutches, band-brakes and long throw leavers, and when the only cab luxury was a padded seat!

He then went on to mobiles, a relative breeze after the old crawlers. He operated units such as several Iron Fairy models - can you imagine a manufacturer coming up with a name like that today! They were great machines though and many are still at work in UK hire fleets. He also took hold of several Hyrdocons, which named their units after Scottish themes such as the Clansman. Then on to a whole range of Coles, Groves and Kato’s. Duxbury has certainly stacked up a wide experience.
He also tried his hand at a few self-propelled aerials, mainly Simon booms up to the 110. I imagine they seemed a bit tame after some of those crawler cranes!

Then sadly it all ended when in January 1998 whilst working on a site erecting steel in Greenford Middlesex with Marsh Plant, he was setting up the outriggers at the side of his crane, ready to place the last two pieces of steel, when he stepped backwards to check the far side and fell down a manhole. He narrowly missed being impaled in the chest by a protruding beam, but his leg did catch the beam resulting in a very serious set of fractures! After numerous operations to correct his leg, he finally had to have his lower left leg amputated.


He goes on to talk about his web site Lifting World:

“During the 6 years that I have been off work, I've had plenty of time to reflect over my past and future and realised that there was a need for a website where site safety and problems etc could be discussed and promoted along with any other topics that are relevant to the lifting industry.

"In March 2003, due to the extent of my injury and with 25 years experience in this field, I decided that I would create a forum/chat website dedicated to cranes and the lifting industry in general.
Although in the main it is a "meeting place" for all experienced crane operators and those already in the industry, it's also designed for anyone who may just be interested or maybe thinking of entering into the ever changing world of cranes etc."

Hearing his story, seeing his site and its aims, we discussed with Terry a possible link from Vertikal.Net and have agreed to mutual links to direct interested parties to 'Lifting World', and vice versa. A link is now in place on our links page, under “Crane Drivers' site”.

The plan is to add a banner in the next few weeks and then to transfer topical news headlines onto 'Lifting World' to help fuel the “chat groups” on the site.

Here is a short-cut for an immediate look.

http://www.lifting-world.co.uk/