For a presidential address in Butler, PA, Managing Partner Dave Brocious (right) and his son Evan pose before flags hoisted by Sky Point Crane.

Sky Point Crane executes high-level, high-voltage power line work in Penn Run, PA.

It was August 2020…8:30 on a Friday night. Dave Brocious, Managing Partner of Sky Point Crane, was on vacation with his family at a lake house in New York. Sky Point Crane is an all-purpose crane and rigging company out of Indiana, Pennsylvania. The caller was one of their customers, a contractor for a large utility company.

“Emergency power outage,” the caller said. In western Pennsylvania, severe winds had downed high-tension, high-voltage transmission lines running into New York City and parts of the state. Millions of users were in the dark. There was more: The damage was off-road and hard to reach, running up and down hills and through woodlands.

“These lines typically have multiple conductors and multiple cables,” Dave explains. But storms show no respect for “typical,” and a fallen tree had taken a 200,000-volt line down with it. For safety, the grid operators had to reroute electricity, causing short-term outages for a major swath of homes, businesses, hospitals, schools and manufacturing plants.

“That was late Friday night,” Dave says, his voice warming to the story. “By 6 a.m. Saturday, our crew and trucks were on site, lifting new tower supports and reattaching conductors.”

Like that, the Sky Point Crane team had mobilized for 12- to 16-hour days until the problem was righted. “We activated our crew and our supply-chain partners. We brought in tractor-trailer loads of equipment, a rough-terrain crane and a fleet of pickup trucks with rigging, cribbing and blocking materials,” Dave recounts. “Our trucks and bulldozers blazed the trail to allow essential equipment to travel over the hills and through the trees.”

By Sunday morning, from the Pennsylvania woods to urban New York, generators were off again, lights were on and a busy corner of the world was back in business. End of story.

No: end of chapter. “The customer called again recently about a planned outage to replace aging wooden towers in its electrical-grid infrastructure,” Dave says. “They’d told their management team: ‘For future projects, planned or emergency, only call Sky Point Crane.’ “

Family Ties

Sky Point Crane was formed when Dave and Marcy Brocious and Brett and Susie Bloxdorf saw a regional need for ready cranes. In 2017, building on top-shelf technology, the two sets of friends turned a niche company into an opportunity for their families and employees. The company name came from the way a crane looks like a child’s finger pointing to the sky.

Brett, a 30-year (plus) veteran of the construction industry, helps in sales and leads in the field and company operations. Dave, a degreed safety engineer with an MBA in finance and business strategy, brings 25 years of experience in the automotive, oil and gas, and construction industries.

From decades with the federal government, Susie helps Sky Point Crane secure local, state and federally funded projects. In a heavily regulated industry, she adds essential knowledge of regulatory, safety and compliance activities. Marcy’s technical expertise shows up in growth and office support. By making Sky Point Crane a woman-owned company, they boost its growth and service that much more.

No Room for Error

Safety starts with listening, Dave says, especially true in crane operations, which are rife with potential hazards. In this case, call it “informed listening.” Sky Point Crane team members are certified professionals, trained to turn up all data necessary to fully assess a site and meet customer requirements. “It’s not our way or the highway,” Dave adds about their work with customers. “You’re using a huge piece of equipment to lift awkward or heavy objects. You work together to create a safe, agreeable, cost-effective plan.”

In the name of safety, Sky Point Crane has been known to decline a customer’s wishes. “On jobs we felt were unsafe for their employees or ours, we said no. Maybe they wanted a smaller crane to pay less,” Dave says. But the right pushback can also ensure a happy customer. “When they see we won’t do something just to make a dollar, they come back and say, ‘What do you recommend?’ Now we can consult.”

Whether Sky Point Crane joins in the planning stage, during a project already in process or in response to an emergency, every job has particular conditions and needs. Conditions vary in terms of terrain and ground stability, obstructions, overhead objects, powerlines, etc. Weather—wind, rain, lightning, ice and snow—may add environmental hazards.

And Sky Point Crane is ready. “Having a degreed safety engineer and a certified lift planner on staff means we can inform our direct customers and consult with engineering firms in their planning stages,” Dave says.

Every big job in a small space, meanwhile, is its own Rubik’s Cube. “You’ve got people working around a busy construction site and expensive equipment and assets,” Dave says. “There’s no room for error. You have to know proper crane setup and rigging. If you’re lifting material, it has to be safe. There are no options. There is no 75% safe. It has to be 100% every time.”

Dave describes a busy street scene in the growing Pittsburgh suburb of Lawrenceville. Sky Point Crane was there to remove a cellular antenna from a 100-foot apartment building. Overhead, the reach was tall and narrow. Below, people were on sidewalks and traffic moved in the streets. Given that every variable is mission critical, Dave says, for Sky Point Crane, every variable is another reason to master and use the latest technology.

To hedge each move, Sky Point Crane uses the latest-model equipment. “Twenty-five years ago no one had heard of a mid-sized truck crane with a hydraulic boom 150 feet long,” Dave says. “The technology in the market allows that now. And that’s why we do what we do: We use technology for efficient, safe and better customer experiences.”  

Boom trucks, truck cranes, off-road/rough terrain and crawler cranes—Sky Point Crane has them, specializing, meanwhile, in newer cranes like telescopic crawlers and Jekko Minicranes. When a longer-term, more dedicated piece of equipment is the best solution, Sky Point Crane uses self-erecting tower cranes from Potain.

“Our operators are fully trained and certified by the National Commission for the Certification of Crane Operators (NCCCO),” Dave says. “They’ve passed rigorous tests on cranes and in writing.”

Elevating Standards

Who relies on Sky Point Crane? From its base between Pittsburgh and State College—the company’s work swings across western and central Pennsylvania, eastern Ohio, northern West Virginia and western Maryland.

Clients include contractors, major corporations, institutions, engineering firms…businesses “up and down the supply chain,” in Dave’s words. “We serve anyone who needs materials or equipment lifted. Oil and gas equipment, manufacturing equipment, highway and civil construction, trusses, beams, towers, utility and telecom equipment, HVAC equipment—when something needs to move, we’re there to move it.”

Management is no easy task. Equipment is expensive to own, maintain and operate; insurance sets stiff requirements; OSHA and regulatory mandates require vigilance. Jobs are exacting. Potential crises keep Sky Point Crane on call 24/7 throughout the year. “Nothing about this is part time,” Dave remarks. “If you do it, you’ve got to commit.”

It’s a Wonderful Lift

Indiana, Pennsylvania, a town of some 14,000 people, is on the map as the hometown of legendary film actor Jimmy Stewart. Marketed as the Christmas Tree Capital of the World, it’s also home to Indiana University of Pennsylvania. And it boasts the annual and renowned “It’s a Wonderful Life” Christmas parade. In that proud community, the Sky Point Crane team lends their unique services to help local events come to life. Each November, both staff and equipment rise to the challenge, for example, to safely cut down and set up a stories-tall Christmas tree in the center of town. 

When a U.S. president spoke at a mass gathering in the area, Sky Point Crane hoisted and waved the commanding stage backdrops of large American flags. To open the Little League World Series regional playoff, while the 11-year-old sister of one of the players sang the Star-Spangled Banner, Sky Point Crane hoisted the American flag. On the twin commitments of safety and service, a company’s name becomes part of the community, part of something bigger than itself. The Sky Point Crane team is building a legacy to make their city and region stronger and more resilient, all of them rising to a bright future.