By Althea Peterson
The good news: Your job takes you 160-feet into the air, with a birds-eye view from Norman to Oklahoma City.
The bad news: Getting to your perch requires a climb up a thin line of stairs each morning, watch wind speed and monitor the construction progress directly below … and you can’t return to the ground for the next nine hours.
Meet John Shaffer, crane operator for Boldt Construction’s most visible campus project, Devon Energy Hall and Rawl Engineering Practice Facility, just off Boyd Street and Jenkins Avenue.
Each weekday morning, at about 7:15, the 59-year-old Yukon resident climbs 160 feet up the Hammer Head Tower Crane, but does not come back down until about 3:30 p.m.
“I can see all the way to Oklahoma City on a clear day,” Shaffer said “It’s a long way over there, I’ll tell you.”
After 10-15 years with Boldt and 20 years working in construction, the height does not intimidate Shaffer.
“I worked in the oil fields when I was 15, so it’s never bothered me,” Shaffer said. “I like cranes and I’m good at it. It’s natural, so I don’t even need to think about it really.”
However, on a windy day in the middle of October, moving forms for the ground floor of Devon Energy Hall, while contacting the workers below, he said it can be a challenge.
“You get one of those big forms in the air and (the workers) can’t hold it steady on a day like this,” Shaffer said.
His cab atop the crane provides the tools necessary to complete the job, including a computer that monitors wind speed, load weight — up to 17,800 lbs — and how far out on the crane’s arm the load is. However, his sky view of the ground can make lowering loads difficult.
“The most challenging thing to running this rig is the load when it’s coming down,” Shaffer said. “I don’t have anything to judge it by, because I’m up above everything. That’s the hardest part of everyday work.”
The $28 million contract for the two new engineering buildings is about a two-year project, on schedule to finish in May 2008, said Jon Drum, senior project manager with Boldt. The crane first appeared on site Aug. 28 this year and allows construction work on both buildings at the same time. Drum said the crane will be around until about August 2007.
“All the heavier items will be hoisted by smaller machinery,” Drum said. “We’re kind of building a wedding cake, floor by floor.”
At neighboring Carson Engineering Center, College of Engineering Dean Tom Landers said the construction has not bothered the staff too much. He said people off campus can have a live view of both projects via Webcam at the college’s Web site, coe.ou.edu.
“It’s real, concrete evidence that our new buildings are becoming a reality,” Landers said.
“The crane is like a landmark for the entire campus.”
Shaffer, who also operated the crane in other campus projects including student housing, the National Weather Center and Lloyd Noble Center, said he has always enjoyed the view from above. Come Monday he said will make the 160-foot climb once again, and continue each day until his work is finished.
“I like operating cranes,” Shaffer said. “It’s got a good view. You can always see birds flying below and people all the time walking by.”
Althea Peterson
366-3539
apeterson@normantranscript.com
