Tandem Crane Lift SWMS

For crane hire companies, builders and riggers who lift heavy or long loads with two mobile cranes. It follows the lift from the documented procedure and crew briefing through setup, test lift, travel and landing, and leaves the general operation of each crane to the crane SWMS.

A SWMS is required by law for high risk construction work (WHS Regulation s 299), and a tandem lift on a construction site is covered by the reg 291 item for movement of powered mobile plant. A tandem lift in a factory, yard or other place that is not construction work does not carry that legal requirement, but the document still works as a written safe work procedure; tick the construction items that apply.

New to SWMS? Read What Is A Safe Work Method Statement?

What Is Covered In Our Tandem Crane Lift SWMS?

After the standard pre-start checks, the job steps run from “Decide on a tandem lift and prepare the documented lifting procedure” to “Pack up and review the lift”. The hazards and controls include:

• Overloading one crane by uneven load share
• Crane tip-over from ground failure or travel
• Cranes colliding with each other or the load
• Miscommunication between operators and the lift director
• Load slipping or sling and spreader failure
• Contact with overhead power lines
• Loads swinging onto people or structures
• Faulty load indicators and limiters
• Two-blocking the hooks
• Wind gusts and ground movement mid-lift
• Load landing unevenly and toppling
• Cranes left unsafe after the lift

High Risk Construction Work

These high risk construction work items (WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) s 291) are already ticked because they are part of this work. Tick any others that apply to your job:

• Is carried out in an area at a workplace in which there is any movement of powered mobile plant

Licences, Training and Competency

• High risk work licence for the class of each crane (slewing mobile crane class matching each crane’s capacity, or the non-slewing class for a pick-and-carry crane)
• Intermediate or advanced rigging licence for the person who directly supervises the lift (Mobile Crane Code of Practice 2024 s 11.3.1; WHS Regulation Sch 3 item 6 covers cranes and dual lifts)
• Dogging licence, or a higher rigging class, for anyone slinging the load or directing a crane operator when the load is out of the operator’s view
• Verified competency of each operator on the crane model, its load indicator and the planned travel or slew movements
• Written evidence that each licence was sighted and recorded before the lift (WHS Regulation s 85)
• Engineer or competent person who prepares or approves the documented lifting procedure and any spreader or lifting beam
• General construction induction training card (white card) for construction work; site induction and a specific lift briefing for all crew

Legislation and Codes of Practice Referenced

• Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld)
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld)
• Mobile Crane Code of Practice 2024 (section 11.3, multiple crane lifts; section 7.5, documented lifting procedures)
• Managing Risks of Plant in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Hazardous Manual Tasks Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Noise and Preventing Hearing Loss at Work Code of Practice 2021
• Managing the Work Environment and Facilities Code of Practice 2021
• How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks Code of Practice 2021
• First Aid in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Electrical Safety Act 2002 (Qld)
• Electrical Safety Regulation 2026 (Qld): ss 10-13 and Schedule 2, overhead power line exclusion zones
• Electrical Safety Code of Practice 2020 – Working near overhead and underground electric lines (distances come from the 2026 Regulation)
• Sch 3 and Sch 19 of the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld): licence classes and meaning of dogging work

What You Get

• An editable Microsoft Word document (13 A4 landscape pages). Type your business, client and job details once and they fill in on every page, with a space for your logo
• 11 job steps for this work, each with its hazards, controls, initial and residual risk scores and the person responsible
• PPE listed for this job: hard hat; safety boots; high-visibility clothing; safety glasses
• Emergency arrangements for: overload alarm or loss of communication and crane instability
• Plus the parts every Work Safety QLD SWMS shares, from the s 291 checklist to the worker sign-on sheet (see the layout in our free SWMS template)

Adjust it for your site, plant and crew, and talk it through with your workers before work starts. Please make sure you read our Disclaimer before downloading this SWMS.

Checked against the Queensland laws and codes of practice listed above. Last reviewed November 2026.