Machinery Testing
GA1 Certification – Thorough Examinations of Lifting Equipment including Attachments & Lifting Accessories.
If you are an employer or self-employed person providing lifting equipment for use at work, or if you have control of the use of
lifting equipment, you must make sure the lifting equipment is safe. The main requirements for you as a ‘duty holder’ are
in the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER) and the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 (LOLER).
LOLER addresses the specific risks associated with the use of lifting equipment.
Thorough examination and inspection are key requirements of the Regulations.
To meet these requirements, duty holders must:
- Ensure lifting equipment (including lifting accessories) exposed to conditions causing deterioration which could lead to dangerous situations undergoes regular thorough examination by a competent person;
- Ensure all supplementary inspections and tests recommended by the competent person are carried out within the timescale stated.
Examples of conditions causing deterioration are wet, abrasive, or corrosive environments.
These are the definition you need to know:
- ‘lifting equipment’ means work equipment for lifting and lowering loads. The definition includes attachments used to anchor, fix or support the equipment (e.g. the runway of an overhead crane);
- ‘accessory for lifting’ means lifting equipment for attaching loads to machinery for lifting.
Examples of Lifting Equipment
- Cranes
- Workplace passenger and goods lifts
- Construction hoists
- Dumb waiters
- Scissors lifts
- Vehicle tail lifts
- Bath hoists
- Stairlifts
- Telehandlers and industrial lift trucks
- Vehicle lifts
Examples of Accessories for lifting
- Slings
- Hooks
- Shackles
- Eyebolts
- Ropes used for climbing or work positioning
Accessories for lifting must be thoroughly examined either at least every 6 months or in accordance with an examination
scheme.