In the spirit of the season, we’re offering 5 rigging resolutions:
Stop dropping tools from the grid – Tie off everything before you go to the grid and be sure to empty your pockets. If people are working below, make sure the stage is marked as a hard hat area and everyone complies. While on the grid, secure all your tools with rope, lanyards or other methods. If you’re attending USITT in March in St. Louis, stop by our booth and pick up a free J.R. Clancy tool lanyard while supplies last.
- Quit calculating fleet angle – There’s an app for that! J.R. Clancy’s iRigging app for Apple and Android includes tools for calculating curtain weights, arbor weights and reference data on all sorts of rigging equipment. This includes wire rope data like minimum sheave diameter, quantity of cable clips, required turn-back for cable clips and cable capacities. The app even includes a calculator to determine the weight of various curtain types.
- Finally get your rigging system inspected – You’ve been putting it off for years, but that scraping on set 12 likely means something is wrong. It’s not going to get better on its own. Even if you can’t hear or see an issue, that doesn’t mean one isn’t hiding somewhere. Short on cash? Secondary schools nationwide can apply for USITT Rigging Safety Initiative; the next application deadline is in April 2017. Other venues can contact J.R. Clancy for help finding a qualified rigging inspector.
- Clean the mid-rail and loading bridge – It gets cluttered up there so quickly, but neatly stacked counterweight and properly dressed rope sets make the rail a much safer and more pleasant place to be. By keeping tools and other potentially dangerous items secured, organization, cleanliness and safety all go hand in hand.
- Test the fire curtain – When’s the last time your fire curtain was deployed? The NFPA80 fire-safety code requires these curtains to be tested at least monthly. Make sure you and your crew know how to deploy and reset your fire curtain. Also, confirm you’re not placing scenery, chairs, stands or anything else underneath the curtain. John Clancy, founder of J.R. Clancy, helped develop the first fire curtain in 1904, just a year after the deadly Iroquois Theatre fire in Chicago.
How about you? What are your own rigging resolutions for the new year?
