Health and Safety Engineering Services (HSES)
On the 1st November 2007 a great deal of the existing sectoral legislation relating to the safeguarding of work and lifting equipment was revoked and replaced. This information pertains to the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (General Application) Regulations 2007, as amended.
Definitions
Work Equipment
means any machinery, appliance, apparatus, tool or installation for use at work.
Lifting Equipment
means work equipment for lifting, lowering loads or pile driving, and includes anything used for anchoring, fixing or supporting such equipment.
Application
The regulations apply to all duty holders (i.e. owners, hirers, users etc) as well as work environments. Such work environments will include:
- Commercial locations (Offices, Shops, etc)
- Hospitals and Nursing Homes
- Quarries
- Construction Sites
- Agricultural locations
- Forestry locations
- Industrial locations (Factories, Docks, Shipbuilding yards, etc)
- Power Generation locations
- And so on.
Mobile work equipment for lifting loads, such as forklifts, telehandlers and so on, should be examined prior to being put into service and thereafter periodically, in order to gauge degradation through in-service life. As well as fulfilling legal requirements to assess the integrity of the equipment, such scrutiny can also be used as an audit of the equipment. Review of the thorough examination findings can be used as a diagnostic tool for the development and/or improvement of work and lifting equipment use and support processes.
Health & Safety Services, Training & Consultancy Ltd, and Health & Safety Engineering Services provide a wide range of engineering services and thorough examinations of plant and equipment, as defined by these regulations.
Period of thorough examination of lifting equipment, lifting accessory equipment or other miscellaneous equipment
| Description of lifting equipment or lifting accessory or other miscellaneous equipment |
Period within which a thorough examination must occur |
|---|---|
| Hoist or lift | 6 months |
| Tailboard goods lift | 12 months |
| Suspended access equipment | 6 months |
| Mast climbing work platform | 6 months |
| Lifting accessories including chains, ropes, rings, hooks, slings, shackles, clamps, swivels, spreader beams and spreader frames, vacuum lifting devices | 6 months |
| Items provided for support of lifting equipment | 12 months |
| Mobile elevating work platform (MEWP), boom lift, scissors lift etc. | 6 months |
| Crane’s | 12 months |
| Tower crane climbing rig | 6 months |
| Crane used in dock work, shipbuilding, ship-repairing | 12 months |
| Forklift truck including interchangeable accessories | 12 months (6 months if used to lift persons) |
| Telehandler including interchangeable accessories | 12 months (6 months if used to lift persons) |
| Vehicle lifting table | 12 months |
| Hoisting equipment on fishing vessels | 12 months |
| Winches & pulley blocks used for lifting loads | 12 months |
| Other lifting machines (personnel) unless specified in Part D of the Schedule | 6 months |
| Equipment loaded in premises used primarily for generating, transforming switching or otherwise regulating electrical energy. | In compliance with a scheme of inspection and testing drawn up by a competent person |
| Patient hoist | 6 months |
| Safety harness, lanyards, rescue tripods & accessories | 6 months |
| Excavators & diggers used for lifting | 12 months |
| Lorry mounted cranes | 6 months |
| Refuse skip trucks | 12 months |
Circumstances requiring testing of lifting equipment as part of a thorough examination
| Description of Equipment | Period within which or conditions under which testing is required |
|---|---|
| All lifting equipment | After any substantial alteration or repair affecting its strength or stability |
| Fixed lifting equipment | Before first use |
| Tower crane | After each assembly and every 4 years |
| Mobile crane | Every 4 years |
| Winch | Every 4 years |
| Self erecting crane | After erection and before first use on site and after any change in configuration or support conditions |
| Pulley block, gin wheel, sheer legs used with loads weighing 1,000kg or more | Before first use in a new position |
For more details or a free quotation please contact Matthew