Something new: My crane learning roller coaster.

I feel glad to be here to participate in a contest hosted by @weisser-rabe, someone I admire so much in this space and has been a source of my growth over here in steemit.

Speaking about something new I learnt was on how to operate a crane. Early last year a company came to start their base in our community and there was massive employment but it didn’t require certification. It was more of skilled work. Since I didn’t have any skill, I couldn’t apply for the job. At some point, they needed crane workers. I decided to use the opportunity to learn how to operate crane.

When I heard crane, I must confess, my mind went to “forklift” machine. Back then, I didn’t really know the names of the machines. I use to mix up the names of the machines. So, when I went for practice and I saw the kind of heavy duty machine, I was really intimidated by the size of the machine. But as time went on it became easier to operate. All you have to know is that you should just master your four levers. “The boom up and boom down, the swing left and swing right, the hoist up and hoist down, then finally the outriggers.

The outriggers are a bit complicated to operate but the major challenge is knowing technicalities when it comes to operating cranes. There are some stuff you learn on your own as a result of the experience you have gained along the line. It will help you excel. You also need to know your LMI AND LOAD CHARTS. No company will give you a job if you don’t know your load chart.

Well, after I was done with the crane learning, I was called upon for a crane interview in the company. I got there and i passed the oral interview and they dropped some people. I was thinking I’ve passed the major test of the interview and the practical was just a work in the park for me. I was feeling like a crane operator already… raising shoulders high like king Kong. But to my greatest disappointment, the crane I saw in the company was far far advanced like the one I used to practice.

In fact, my failure started when I saw the name “Tadano crane”. I started asking if they don’t have “grove crane”, I was told this is what they have. I started sweating everywhere. It was now my turn to be screened for the interview. The buttons and the dashboard I saw when I stepped in the crane made me panic. The interviewer already noticed it and asked me if I’ve driven it before, I summoned courage to say “yes”. I was expecting a miracle.

The interviewer left the machine and told me to start the machine. I successfully started the machine, hoping the dashboard will be similar to what I’ve operated before. The dashboard alone gave me more headaches. The rigger now told me to bring the outriggers outside. I saw a symbol on the machine that looks like the outrigger sign, I decided to try my luck. As I clicked on it, the crane machine started to shake and started acting funny. The interviewer just jumped into the crane, did some few clicks on the dashboard and the machine became calm. That was how he told me my interview was over. I didn’t even bother to argue with him. I just left the company compound for them.

Well, my experience back then was actually a funny experience because I went to improve on my skill and I have been using the crane knowledge to make some money for myself but it still doesn’t mean that I can operate all advance cranes. I just operate the ones I’ve knowledge of and watch some YouTube videos to give me little insight on how other advanced cranes are.