i have 5 tower cranes outside my window at different construction sites and they all position their cranes the same direction at the end of the day. is there a reason for this.
It might be that specific company or something. I'm on the Las Vegas strip right now, and there are dozens of cranes pointed every which way.
I can think of a few reasons. The first 2 are safety related, the 3rd is work-efficiency related. 1. To minimize wind loading for the expected wind-direction overnight. 2. To minimize damage to the surrounding area should a failure happen and a crane fall (similar to felling a tree in a forest so it falls in the direction the lumberjack wants it to fall). 3. To leave the boom over the worksite for the next morning's first pickup (so, it would be a coincidence that all the pickup sites were at the same angle relative to the booms). .
I would think it's wind-related. If they were all pointed differently, one would catch more wind and spin more. If they were close enough, this one may hit another. If they were all pointed the same, this would be less likely (although not guaranteed). They SHOULD be spaced apart sufficiently, though, so during operations there is no chance of hitting another. So, it's more likely because of something on the ground. Maybe at last drop off they were all pointing in the same direction?
I spent a year walking to work past a tower crane that was being used for a high rise apartment building in Philadelphia. I don't recall ever seeing it parked pointing in the same direction two days in a row.
