In the first of three video series in cooperation with MHI (American Material Handling, Logistics and Supply Chain Association), we caught up with every lifting and lifting accessories association; HMI, Crane Manufacturers Association, MMA, The Monorail Overhead Alliance, CMAA, and the American Crane Manufacturers Association for the latest news.

Here, HMI President Mark Arthur (Mark Arthur) introduced to us how it released a lifting work service classification video to better understand the required terminology and the challenges brought about by the slow adoption rate of Industry 4.0 in the industry . 

Arthur has been the president of HMI for two years and his term will end at the end of this year. Jonathan Martha, president of Acco Material Handling, will take over the position. 

"In the past few years, HMI has done a good job in reaching and educating customers, and the technology we have allows us to do this through videos, white papers and blogs," he said. 

HMI currently has 14 members, mainly distributed on the east coast, covering most of the products sold in the United States.  

Member companies are suppliers of hoist equipment (hand chain hoists, lever hoists, trolleys, pneumatic chain hoists, pneumatic wire rope hoists, electric chain hoists and wire rope electric hoists) and continue to be the source of advocating hoist safety and performance. 

One example is that MHI, CMAA, and MMA are organizing a series of elevated lifting safety webinars to encourage the safe use of their products in October, and HMI will host one of the modules in different conferences, focusing on innovations that can be used to help manufacturers today Operate their equipment more safely and ensure product safety and ensure the safety of personnel operating the equipment. 

Arthur said that from an HMI perspective, what the industry can do better is to “really establish contact with owners, operators, and those responsible for equipment maintenance and safety, because they seem to be out of touch, and everyone needs to solve it. "Answer" the question.  

"People don't know where to go for advice to make sure they make the right decision about the equipment, which seems challenging," he added. 

In his own role, Arthur is the Director of Customer Service Product Support for R&M Materials Handling in Springfield, Ohio. 

He said that Industry 4.0 technology is developing so fast, but sometimes the speed of reaching the equipment may be slow, and the speed of customers accepting the technology is even slower. 'The slow adoption rate is surprising'. 

HMI continues to hold workshops and educational courses, and publishes instructions for its members, and will soon launch a video to understand the classification of lifting services, because Arthur said that there is still some confusion about these classifications.  

Multiple organizations; for example, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) CMAA, the European Federation of Material Handling (FEM), and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) have issued classifications of services for lifting operations, but each of these standards uses a different name as Classification, there is almost no correspondence between definitions from one organization to another.

For example; FEM: 1Dm, 1Cm, 1Bm, 1Am, 2m, 3m, 4m and 5m; ISO: M1. M2, M3, M4, M5, M6, M7, and M8; ASME: H1, H2, H3, H4, and H5; and CMAA: A, B, C, D, E, and F.

To help crane users compare these different classifications, HMI has published a document detailing the different types, terminology and standards applicable to the United States and the rest of the world. "Crane basic information and standard outline" can be used as a reference for users to download for free, because they have browsed mandatory regulations and voluntary use suggestions, and the video is to help with this. 

"There are many different standards that apply to the HMI market, and each standard has a slightly different definition of the duty service classification. Customers need to do this correctly to ensure that their hoist can continue to be used as designed. This video will Help buyers make an informed decision in the final purchase," Arthur said. 

When determining which crane has a suitable duty cycle for a given application, the company must first define certain operating parameters. These include: 

Having this information will help industrial cranes and/or crane companies recommend the best size cranes for the company’s applications to ensure safe and efficient operation. Applications equipped with small hoists will experience a shorter service life; on the contrary, oversized hoists will require more expensive maintenance and replacement parts. 

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