Malvern Crane and Rigging Prep for Brick City Crews

A century of brick

Acme Brick bought property at nearby Perla in 1919 and gained Malvern plants a decade later when it acquired Arkansas Brick and Tile in 1929. In 1980 it closed its old Malvern plant and opened a new operation in the city called the Ouachita Plant. Other names in the city's brick history, such as Atchison Brick Works and Malvern Brick & Tile, are gone, but the industry remains a significant one for the town.

For crane crews, a brick plant is a maintenance job that never ends. Kiln car tracks, burner assemblies, dryer fans, extruders and conveyors all wear out and get replaced. Many of those components are heavy, awkward and installed in cramped buildings where a mobile crane can only reach through a roof opening or a wall panel.

Know which agency covers the ground you're on

Brick plants depend on clay, and clay pits are mining operations. Crane work at an active pit or quarry falls under MSHA rather than OSHA's construction crane standard, and MSHA has its own training rules. Inside the manufacturing plant, general-industry OSHA rules apply, while construction and major alterations bring in 29 CFR 1926 Subpart CC. Ask the plant which rules govern before you mobilize.

Accredited crane certification is widely accepted across all three settings as proof that an operator knows the fundamentals, which is one reason plant contractors ask for it even when a specific rule does not spell it out.

Shutdown lifts, step by step

These steps track closely with what the rigger level 2 and signal person exams expect candidates to know.

• Get component weights from the manufacturer or drawings; do not guess on old equipment.
• Inspect the plant's lifting lugs and beams before trusting them.
• Plan the path from crane to final position, including any roof penetration or wall opening.
• Assign one signal person and make sure the operator knows who it is.
• Watch for heat: kiln areas can stay hot long after shutdown, affecting synthetic slings and people.

Getting around Hot Spring County

Malvern sits on I-30 between Benton and Arkadelphia, with Hot Springs a short drive northwest. Contractors based here regularly cover jobs in all directions: highway work along I-30, lakefront work toward Lake Catherine, timber and industrial sites to the south. The Ouachita River bottoms and creek floodplains around town can stay soft after heavy rain, so check ground before setting up on any unfamiliar pad. Spring storms and summer heat round out the planning list.

No state card, but federal rules apply

Arkansas does not license crane operators and runs no State Plan. Private employers in Malvern fall under federal OSHA through the Little Rock Area Office. Small, high-hazard employers can ask the Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing for a free, confidential OSHA consultation visit, which does not lead to citations. Our requirements guide covers operator certification under 1926.1427 and the rigger and signal person rules.