05.09.2023

J. Keith Anderson 1953 – 2023

We have received the sad news today that Keith Anderson - a widely recognised lifting and rigging engineer and former chief rigging engineer for Bechtel - has died. He passed away peacefully on Thursday August 24th after a long battle with cancer, his wife Kathryn was at his side. He was 70.

Anderson was born in Newcastle, UK and graduated in 1975 with a BSc in Mechanical Engineering from Lanchester Polytechnic Coventry - now Coventry University. He began his heavy lifting career In 1979 when he was appointed as an engineer at Kramo Montage, following a couple of years designing high pressure hydraulic braking system components. At Kramo he was involved with engineering and overseeing custom lifting and skidding applications using its hydraulic gripper type climbing jacks. Over the next 12 years with the company he was promoted to increasingly senior roles, becoming chief engineer.
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Keith Anderson

In 1991 he was appointed chief engineer for Van Seumeren UK - now Mammoet UK - leaving in 1996 to join Sarens in order to manage its heavy haulage operations in the UK. He rejoined Van Seumeren in 1998 as contracts manager, based in Utrecht, the Netherlands, and then in 2000 he was recruited by global engineering and construction company Bechtel, initially as senior rigging engineer based in London. The following year he moved to Bechtel’s operation in Louisville, Kentucky as rigging manager and then chief rigging engineer. He retired from the company in September 2020.

Over the years he has made a massive contribution to the rigging and heavy lifting industry, and in 2013 he published a book ‘Rigging Engineering Basics’ followed by ‘Rigging Engineering Calculations’. He said at the time: “Training resources for engineers and others who plan to engage in lifting and moving operations have not kept pace with the evolution of cranes and sophisticated, heavy transport equipment. When you are lifting and moving things, you are dealing with considerable risk. Training for people who plan and execute this type of work is critical."
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During his time with Bechtel, he was adopted into the Bechtel Distinguished Engineers & Scientists Programme which "recognises employees who have made particularly significant technical contributions to Bechtel’s success and reputation. They promote technical excellence throughout the company and take a leadership role in coaching and mentoring other specialists". At the time he was one of only 51 Bechtel employees to receive the accolade out of more than 50,000 employees. He was also named a ‘Top 25 Newsmaker for 2015 by Engineering News-Record (ENR) magazine.

Keith Anderson was not only a brilliant lifting engineer, but he also authored numerous papers and helped train and mentor dozens, if not hundreds of budding heavy lift riggers and planners, while advising more senior engineers tackling challenging lifts. In the words of one of them: “Ever the practical engineer, his final decisions led to his exit, in a manner that satisfied him. He was a kind and generous mentor to me and hundreds of others over the years. The world is a poorer place today."

Another said: “The construction and heavy lift industries, and the world at large, are a whole lot poorer today... It's been said that when an older person dies, "a library burns to the ground"... In Keith's case, and for those of us in the heavy lift business, this is like having the US Library of Congress burn down... he will most certainly be missed.”

He leaves behind his beloved wife Kathryn and children Rory, Aidan and Ollie.