Bishop Lifting Products just returned from participating in the Texas Oilman’s Charity Invitational Fishing Tournament on July 22-24th in Matagorda, Texas. 750 fishermen converge on Matagorda for this event benefiting a number of local charities including the Shrine Burn Hospital for Children, Special Olympics Texas National Games, and the Boys & Girls Club of Harris County to name a few.
This year is expected to bring $ 400,000, but in 2009 the tournament netted $455,808. Of last years amount, $402,955 was distributed to 39 charities and $52,853 was retained to start our 2010 tournament. The total distribution to charities from our 2002 inaugural event to 2009 has been $2.7 million.
Friday delivered high winds and rough seas, but we boated a few speckled trout despite the conditions. Saturday winds laid down and cleared the water up, making the boat rides easier on everyone.
Jeff Bishop carried Team Bishop Lifting and landed a 26-1/2” – 5 lb. 6 oz. speckled trout and a 23” redfish early on a topwater lure. His patented speckled trout call and maduro cigar seemed to be the secret to his success. His speckled trout weighed in and placed a respectable 4th place.
Team Bishop Lifting Products, Inc. consisted of 8 fishermen and a fishing guide. We had a great time supporting this great charity.
The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration today announced that it is issuing a new rule addressing the use of cranes and derricks in construction, which will replace a decades-old standard. Approximately 267,000 construction, crane rental and crane certification establishments employing about 4.8 million workers will be affected by the rule published today.
"The significant number of fatalities associated with the use of cranes in construction led the Labor Department to undertake this rulemaking," said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. "After years of extensive research, consultation and negotiation with industry experts, this long overdue rule will address the leading causes of fatalities related to cranes and derricks, including electrocution, boom collapse and overturning."
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Didn't have breakfast this morning? How about a crane pancake? Mmmm...sounds yummy. This guy Jim makes fun and creative pancakes for his daughter and cooked up this very awesome Tower Crane! He even shares what pieces he uses to assemble the final product. Crane pancakes sound like a great meal. Eat a few of these and you're sure to get a pick-me-up! We will have to work on making some slings & shackles for the pancake crane.
Check out what other creations Jim comes up with at www.jimspancakes.com
Slingmax President Jeff Susman presents the Golden Hoagie Award
Bishop Lifting Products, Inc. (BLP) was awarded the 2009 SlingMax Golden Hoagie award for being the top SlingMax ® dealer of 2009. This is the fourth time in six years that BLP has received the top Slingmax ® national dealer award. Over the past 16 years, BLP has continually been in the top 5 SlingMax Dealers worldwide, and was one of the first dealers set up in 1988.
Jeff Susman, President of SlingMax Rigging Solutions headquartered in Aston, Pennsylvania, hosted a party on April 20, 2010 at Bishop Lifting's Houston headquarters to present the award. One hundred and thirty employees were treated to specially made Hoagie sandwiches and Tasty Cakes flown in from Philadelphia.
"We work hard to supply Slingmax ® products to all our customers," said Jeff Bishop, President of Bishop Lifting. "It is a great achievement for our company and employees to be honored for the fourth time and we appreciate the support Slingmax ® provides us."
The use of high performance slings plays an important role in the crane and rigging industry. Bishop Lifting Products fabricates a variety of sling types, but has always done exceptionally well with Slingmax® Rigging Solutions. Slings are used for lifting any type of load no matter the size, weight or shape. Bishop Lifting Products partnered with Slingmax ® to supply the right Twin-Path ® or Gator-Laid ® sling for each lifting job. Industries that utilize slings for their lifting applications include aerospace, construction, crane and rigging, government and military, manufacturing, commercial fishing, mining, oil & gas, petrochemical, pipeline, and power generation.
BLP President Jeff Bishop accepts the Golden Hoagie Award from Slingmax president Jeff Susman.
BLP employees get in line for the delicious Hoagies from Philadephia.
Back in March at the HBR Crane and Rigging meeting Matt Gardiner with HAAG Engineering made a presentation on "Wind Effect on Cranes and Loads". The power of the wind is often underestimated when working with cranes. People sometimes forget that there is a significant potential for disasters due to wind loads. Please be careful when wind becomes a factor on the job.
Guy Ramsey with Maximum Capacity Media visited and extended a $100 discount for all HBR members wanting to attend the 2010 Crane and Rigging Conference at the Crown Plaza Houston/Greenspoint on May 26th and 27th here in Houston, Texas. The Crane & Riggin Conference offers "safety personnel, fleet and facility managers, as well as operators an independent forum where crane users and suppliers can debate the real-world dynamics of working with this equipment." BLP is an Event Partner of the CRC. We hope to see you there.
Our guest for April's meeting was Richard Corbello with Columbus-McKinnon. He gave a presentation on "Chain Hoists and Come-A-Longs". This topic will be available soon for download on the HBR site.
The May meeting for HBR will be a Breakfast Meeting held at Brady's Landing and will feature a few booths from some of our members. There will be two special topics discussed. One will be a discussion on 3rd Party Inspections and will have panel members form CICB, NACB and Bishop Lifting Products, Inc. for discussion. We look forward to conversing on the importance of lifting material inspections. The second topic will be Load Calculations-Part II, by Carol Crane and Rigging.
There are many events and conferences coming up in May for the Lifting and Rigging Industry. The 2010 Offshore Technology Conference takes place May 3rd - 6th at the Reliant Center. OTC is "the world's foremost event for development of offshore resources in the fields of drilling, exploration, production, and environmental protection." Bishop Lifting Products, Inc. will be in booth 1009. Come and see what we have rigged up for 2010.
The Association of Crane & Rigging Professionls General Assembly Meeting will take place in Shreveport, Louisiana on May 11th thru 13th. ACRP is "dedicated to improving crane operations and rigging activities in all industries." They provide educational materials and opportunities to it's members and also to the public so we can all stay informed on crane and rigging operations in our industry.
As always, "Safety is Number One" and we hope to see you at one or all of these events.
News from Slate.com
Once a separate nation, Texas has recently been behaving more like an independent economic republic than a regular state. While it hasn't been immune to the problems plaguing the nation, the Texas housing market, employment rate, and overall economic growth are relatively strong. Chalk some of this up to accidents of geology and geography.
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Jeff Bishop, President of Bishop Lifting Products
and AWRF (Associated Wire Rope Fabricators), will be attending the AWRF General Meeting and P.I.E. in Bellevue, WA
April 11-14th. The P.I.E. (Product Information Exhibit) is an annual event where members set up booths and participate display products. Some of the exhibitors include The Crosby Group, Chant Engineering, Holland 1916, and Infochip Systems to name a few.
The schedule of events:
Sunday, April 11, 2010 – Registration, PIE set up, Reception
Monday, April 12, 2010 – Product & Information Exhibition
Tuesday, April 13, 2010 – General Business Session, Tour & Fun Run, Closing Banquet
Wednesday, April 14, 2010 – AWRF Golf Tournament
Pictured below: Jeff Bishop accepts the award for President of AWRF
The Crosby Group recently announced two new products we want to share with you:
G-2169 Screw Pin "Wide Body" Shackles 
The new Screw Pin "Wide Body" shackle was recently introduced for use on Twin-Path Extra Covermax Slings, Single Path High Performance Slings, polyester roundslings and wire rope slings. The radius of the shackle bow provides minimum increase of 58 in sling bearing surface. This translates into a minimun of 15 usable increase in sling strength. We are stocking all 3 sizes (7, 12.5 and 18 metric tons) in the galvanized finish. Self colored is also available upon request. Find the Specification sheet here...
Split Nut Retention System
Hooks on crane blocks must be inspected in accordance to ASME B30, CSA Z150 and other crane standards. McKissick's innovative Split-Nut Retention System makes inspection tons easier. With 4 easy steps, the hook can be disassembled, inspected and put back into service in a fraction of the time for a conventional threaded nut. More information...
At the Houston Business
Roundtable meeting on January 12th, we were excited to see all
the new attendees... We had record attendance for January with around 43
people.
Topics discussed included: Lifting Lugs, OSHA update on
C-DAT proposal, and an ASME B30 Committee
chair person roster was passed out.
Charlie Emmitte, of Valero Refining, brought up a good discussion on wind
considerations and LSI wind
monitoring equipment. Wayne Oswald
showed a “Powerful” power point presentation on texting while driving. I presented a framed photo to Kerry Hulse of Deep South Crane and Rigging as a
token of his traveling preparation reputation.
Walter Brumley called for topics and speakers for upcoming
meetings and breakfast forums. HBR is
planning an April breakfast forum with a likely panel discussion format. Likely topics will be 3rd party
inspection practices.
At the end of the meeting we had a surprise bachelor’s party
for Walter Brumley who’s getting married on Saturday... Congratulations Walter!
At the
NCCCO Commissioners meeting, new commissioners from the area were voted in for 5 year terms. These commissioners are Charles "Cooter" Sager from Exxon Mobil and Carlo Spitaleri from LyondellBasell Refinery. The Rigging Taskforce updated progress and the next meeting will be held in Houston sometime in January. The next commissioners meeting is scheduled for Atlanta, Georgia, sometime in May 2010.. The
Crane and Rigging Conference 2010 is scheduled for May 26-27th, 2010. We need to be sure that the commissioners meeting doesn't conflict with this event.