One Injury, $40,000 Lost: Why Every Lift Should Be Re-Evaluated

In the world of facilities maintenance, a back injury becomes a budget line item. A delay. A liability. And in many cases, it's entirely preventable.

Despite increased awareness around workplace safety, overexertion injuries—particularly those tied to manual lifting—remain one of the most persistent and expensive problems in industrial settings. The numbers are staggering. Back and musculoskeletal injuries can cost employers tens of thousands of dollars per incident. That figure includes direct expenses like medical treatment and workers' compensation, but it doesn't stop there. Downtime, temporary labor, lost productivity, and increased insurance premiums all pile on.

For a single back injury, estimates commonly range around $40,000. Multiply that across multiple teams, locations, or repeated incidents, and the financial impact becomes harder to write off as "just part of the job."

Why Investing in Workplace Safety Pays Off

Most facility managers would agree that safety is a priority. But the gap between safety policies and day-to-day practices often leaves workers exposed. When heavy HVAC units or equipment need to be lifted to rooftops or pulled from trucks, teams often resort to manual lifts or patchwork solutions. It's fast, familiar, and too often, it works—until it doesn't.

The issue isn't always negligence. Sometimes it's a lack of better options. Cranes are expensive and need to be scheduled days in advance. Traditional hoists aren't always practical. And budgets rarely allow for downtime.

That’s where tools like the Cranky Portable Winch come into play. Weighing just 29 pounds, Cranky is engineered to handle serious lifting while remaining portable, compact, and easy to deploy. It lets a single technician lift heavy equipment safely and efficiently—no crane, no extra crew, and no strain on the body.

Cranky is also highly adaptable. It mounts to permanent building posts, roof hatch ladders using Ladderport’s Port-A-Post, and vehicles with standard hitch receivers. Whether you're lifting to a rooftop or unloading from a van, Cranky supports the job wherever it's needed. It safely lifts up to 300 pounds, using a 4.4:1 crank ratio that allows single-technician operation without strain or risk.

Rethinking "Good Enough"

Injury prevention doesn't start after something goes wrong. It begins with questioning whether the current way of doing things is truly the safest, most cost-effective way.

Is "team lifting" really protecting your employees? Is avoiding a crane rental worth the risk of a long-term injury? How many more "close calls" will it take before the process changes?

Facilities that adopt proactive solutions like Cranky aren't just buying a tool. They're reducing liability. They're making safety scalable. They're turning one of the most injury-prone parts of the job into a controlled, manageable process.

When you rethink the way you lift, you're not only preventing injuries. You're protecting your people, your schedule, and your bottom line.

And that makes every lift worth re-evaluating.

Looking to reduce injury risks and lifting costs in your facility? Visit ladderport.com to learn how Ladderport and the Cranky Portable Winch System can make your safety strategy more effective—and more affordable.