There are a number of benefits to conducting your own In-House LOLER Inspections but, before we get onto those, you need to get at least one of your staff trained to conduct the examinations. Your first thought might be the cost but compared to the cost of inspections you should see a return from this investment very quickly.
The official name for your staff member once they have completed the training is a ‘Competent Person’. This person will be able to conduct LOLER Inspections for your small lifting equipment and accessories. It is worth mentioning that this individual cannot be the maintenance engineer who repairs your equipment. If you have a large maintenance department with a number of employees, the mechanic can be a competent person but must not inspect their own work.
So what training would they require to become a ‘Competent Person’?
Report of Thorough Examination
The training course we can deliver is officially called NPORS N019 Report of Thorough Examination and this covers small lifting equipment and accessories. The program is delivered using a mixture of both classroom based tutorial and practical demonstration, followed by a final course assessment.
For candidates of all abilities Lifting Operation experience would be beneficial as candidates will be required to recognise and inspect various lifting equipment. Upon successful completion of the assessments candidates will have the knowledge and the skills to be proficient in the assessment and inspection and able to complete a Thorough Examination Inspection report.
LOLER inspection reports
LOLER inspection reports are required for items such as:
Lifting Accessories
Variations of lifting accessories include Slings, Shackles, Hooks, Wire rope, Clamps, Trolleys, Grabs, Beams.
Small Lifting Equipment
Variations of small lifting equipment include Snatch block, Gin wheels, Pull lifts or lever hoists, Hoists and runways, Tirfor type pull, lift machine, Manual chain blocks, Tripod & winch, Fall protection equipment, Safety harnesses, lanyards, fall arrest blocks.
During the training course candidates will inspect and assess five pieces of equipment and accessories over the two day duration. This will give them lots of time to see, evaluate and inspect safety equipment.
Does my equipment need LOLER Inspections?
If you answer yes to question 1 and any of the options in column 2 and question 3, the equipment is likely to be subject to LOLER.
If you have answered no to question 1 you may still have duties under section 3 or 4 of the HSW Act to ensure the safety of users.
If you have answered no to all the options in column 2 and/or question 3, your equipment may still be subject to the need for inspection and maintenance under the provisions of PUWER.
Equipment Safety Inspector
In accordance with the requirements defined under the LOLER 1998 Regulations, a ‘competent person’ should carry out a LOLER Inspection and Thorough Examination of Lifting Equipment and Accessories every:
- 6 months for lifting accessories
- 6 months for lifting equipment and accessories associated with lifting people
- 12 months for all other lifting equipment
- Any other frequency defined by the written scheme of examination
So what are the benefits of converting to In-House LOLER Inspections?
The durations between inspections are not long, so with these in mind here are our five benefits of having an in-house lifting equipment inspector.
- Economical – Comparing the cost of training to companies who charge per item. It is more economical to have an in-house staff member, i.e. a health and safety manager who can check the lifting equipment and accessories as they go around.
- In-house inspections can be completed at your own pace – this helps to spread the workload, rather than all the items having to be checked on the same day.
- Your qualified ‘competent person’ can inspect safety equipment on-site, the lifting equipment inspector can go to each depot to do the checks, saving the need for all the equipment to be moved to be checked by an external body.
- Regular checks help to identify damaged items quicker, items are then able to be replaced as required which helps to spread the cost of replacement lifting equipment or lifting accessories.
- By making your employees more aware of damages, your employee can also help to highlight possible damages arising during pre shift checks. Making your workforce more pro active rather than reactive to any issues. When employees knowing that there is an inspector on-site who can inspect the items without there being a price per check, it means that they will not worry about getting in to trouble for reporting faulty goods. A sling for example can be placed in quarantine if the operator is unsure of safety, for the Inspector to check. Employees are therefore less likely to be using damaged or faulty goods.
How we can help
Our group training courses are regularly conducted throughout the year for individuals to attend and are held at our Training Centre in Middlewich. For larger groups we can conduct a course just for you and your employees with up to 8 candidates per course. These can be delivered on-site or again come to us, where we have all the equipment and accessories necessary for the training for you to use.
Safety doesn’t happen by accident! Keeping your LOLER equipment safe and compliant is straightforward with In-House LOLER Inspections for more details give us a call on 01606 832 556 or ‘Get in Touch‘ Our team is waiting to help.
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