Why the crawler feels different
On a lattice boom crane, the boom is built from pinned sections and hangs from pendants and wire rope, so its length is fixed for the job. You place the load by booming up and down, swinging and hoisting, and a heavy machine with a long boom takes patience to stop smoothly. Long booms also mean the hook sits well away from the cab, which makes judging the ball over a small target harder than it looks from the ground.
That is what the Lattice Boom Crawler (LBC) practical really tests: whether you can make a big, slow machine do small, precise things. NCCCO handles lattice designations under its mobile crane operator program.
What you'll be asked to do
The LBC practical has six examiner-scored tasks.
Inspection (untimed)
Name five items on the crawler and describe how you'd inspect each one, spending about a minute on each. Know parts like the wire rope, sheaves, pendants, hook block and boom lacing well enough to talk through them.
Stop circle (timed)
Lift the test weight at least 10 feet and bring it to rest in the marked stop circle.
Hand signals (untimed)
The examiner gives four standard ASME B30.5 signals and you respond to each correctly.
Barrels (timed)
Set the ball into two barrels in sequence. Smooth, controlled movement scores; jerky corrections cost time.
Zigzag corridor (timed)
Carry the loaded weight through the corridor going forward, then come back in reverse, never touching the boundaries.
Shutdown (untimed)
Shut the crane down properly and explain how you would secure it for the night.
Each timed task has an optimum time. Inside it, you lose nothing; beyond it, deductions build gradually, and once you reach 1.5 times that time the examiner may call the task. The NCCCO candidate handbook holds the complete scoring rules and is worth reading the week before.
Rules that void a run
Four things can disqualify a lattice candidate outright: any uncontrolled or reckless action, letting anyone besides exam personnel into the test area, ignoring the examiner's instructions or a stop signal, and taking the load around the course instead of through it. That last one catches people on the corridor when the swing gets away from them. Slow down, stay inside the lines, and accept the time penalty rather than cutting a corner.
Who can sit the LBC practical
NCCCO sets the requirements, not us. You must be 18 or older, meet its physical requirements and comply with its substance abuse policy. The practical is the hands-on half of lattice certification; the other half is the written exam for the same designation, and both must be passed within 12 months of each other. Many candidates finish the written exams before the practical, though NCCCO doesn't require that order.
Keep in mind the exam is a testing service and not a class. If you haven't run a crawler, train before you book a date.
Test-day checklist
- Watch the NCCCO Candidate Video no more than 24 hours before you test.
- Bring photo ID with your date of birth, such as a driver's license.
- Wear PPE that meets federal OSHA requirements.
- Expect around 15 minutes on the crawler's controls before scoring, plus about 5 unscored minutes with the test weight.
- Listen to the examiner the whole way through.
When you're done, NCCCO emails the result and posts it to your candidate portal, normally within about 12 working days of receiving the score sheet.
Preparing on the crawler you'll test on
Our lattice courses train you on the crawler crane that sits on our practical course, running the same kinds of tasks until the controls stop surprising you. The 40-hour lattice course is the full program for people new to lattice booms. The 20-hour course suits operators who already run crawlers and want focused exam prep. If you're coming from out of town, the premium lattice course offers optional room and board. Extra seat time is available by the hour through practice bookings, and what to expect explains a normal training day.