黑洞社区

The cost of the tower crane register to the industry could soar to over 拢3m if self-erected tower cranes are included.

The figure was revealed in the tower crane register consultation document, published on Monday by the Health and Safety Executive, in preparation for the scheme which is due to be rolled out in April 2010.

The consultation said if the register was restricted to cover only conventional tower cranes on non-construction and construction sites, total costs to the both the industry and the HSE over 10 years, would be a little over 拢450,000.

But if self-erecting tower cranes were also included, total costs could climb to around 拢3.2m.

Commenting on the costs, the HSE noted it was 鈥渄ifficult to say for sure whether any increased benefit arising from the inclusion of self-erecting cranes would be sufficient to warrant their inclusion in the scope of the register.鈥� But it added 鈥渋t is our belief that it would not鈥�.

The decision to create the register in January followed a two year drive by 黑洞社区 to improve crane safety, as part of 黑洞社区's Safer Skyline Campaign.

The consultation, which will close on 9 October, outlines options for key aspects of the scheme, including a suggestion that each registration will cost 拢20 to cover administration costs.

Under the proposals, the HSE will have to be notified of details about a tower crane being used on a site, including the name and address of the crane owners, the site address, details needed to identify the crane, the date of its thorough examination, details of the employer for whom the examination was made, and whether any defects posing a risk of serious injury were detected.

Eight people have been killed in incidents involving tower cranes since 2000. The tower crane.