Essential guide to...LOLER

The punishment for taking lifting operations for granted can be brutal. Just a couple of months ago, for example, the failure of construction firm Bouygues UK to manage a hazardous lifting operation in London cost it £255,000 when a worker died after being crushed by a concrete beam. In another shocking case, Renold Power Transmission was fined £80,000 with costs of £12,696 in January this year after an employee's hand was badly mangled as he operated a crane. The financial cost of such accidents is significant, but it is the hurt and misery they inflict on the victims, their friends and families that is the real tragedy. However, safety is not the only reason for meeting the safe lifting regulations; their focus on maintenance can also help you boost your factory's output. The main legislation in the UK covering lifting is the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations (LOLER). Here's a rough guide to the regulations. What is LOLER? LOLER, which came into force on 5 December 1998, places duties on people and companies who own, operate or have control of lifting equipment. This includes organisations whose employees use lifting kit, whether or not it's owned by them. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) defines lifting equipment as any equipment used at work for lifting or lowering loads, including attachments used for anchoring, fixing or supporting it. In most cases, lifting equipment is also work equipment so the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations (PUWER) will also apply. What is LOLER for? Its stated aim is to make working life safer for everyone – employers and employees, contractors and others – who uses and comes into contact with lifting equipment. Am I affected by LOLER? The answer is yes if your factory uses lifting equipment such as hoists or cranes and components including chains, ropes, slings, hooks, shackles and eyebolts. The regulations cover employers or self-employed people providing lifting equipment for use at work or, as the HSE rather clumsily puts it, "those who have control of the use of lifting equipment". What do I have to do to comply with the regulations? You must ensure that lifting equipment is sufficiently strong, stable and suitable for its proposed use. The load and anything attached to it (such as pallets and lifting points) must also be suitable. On top of this, the lifting equipment should be positioned or installed in such a way that it prevents the risk of injury. It also needs to be marked with information that must be taken into account for its safe use (safe working loads, for example). Accessories like slings and clamps should be similarly marked. Finally, you need to make sure that: - lifting operations are planned, supervised and carried out safely by 'competent' people; - where equipment is used to lift people, it is marked accordingly and is safe for this purpose; - lifting equipment is thoroughly examined in use and, where appropriate, before it is used for the first time. How often should lifting equipment be inspected? At least six-monthly for accessories and equipment used for lifting people and, at a minimum, annually for all other equipment, or at intervals laid down in an examination scheme drawn up by a 'competent person'. Indeed, all examination work should be performed by a 'competent person'. Following a thorough examination or inspection, this person should submit a report to the employer to take the appropriate action. What is the definition of a 'competent person'? The regulations say this is: "The individual nominated by the employer to carry out thorough examinations on the basis of his or her level of knowledge of the equipment, defects and their causes, methods of testing and fault diagnosis." He or she must be independent of the employer's line management, although "the competent person can be in-house or from an external organisation such as an insurance company". What equipment and which operations are not covered by LOLER? Curiously, the regulations themselves don't contain a definition of lifting equipment. However, it's fair to say that, in most cases, LOLER won't apply to work equipment that doesn't have as its principal function a use for lifting or lowering of the type associated with traditional lifting equipment such as cranes, forklift trucks, or accessories like chains or eyebolts. Examples of equipment and operations not covered by LOLER are conveyor belts that move articles horizontally and winching a load on level ground. LOLER doesn't apply in the latter situation because the load doesn't leave the ground. However, a similar level of safety will be required by PUWER which will apply because, although it isn't classed as lifting equipment, the winch is work equipment. Unassisted manual movement of loads does not involve work equipment and is not covered by LOLER, although the Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 do apply. For more information on LOLER, visit: bit.ly/1fkE7nx Dos and don'ts of lifting safely The HSE makes a series of recommendations designed to ensure that your lifting equipment and operations are safe. They include: - Use only certified lifting equipment, marked with its safe working load, which is not overdue for examination - Keep the reports of thorough examinations as well as any declarations of conformity or test certificates - Make sure the load is properly attached to the lifting equipment. If necessary, securely bind the load to prevent from it slipping or falling off - Before lifting an unbalanced load, ascertain its centre of gravity by raising it a few inches off the ground and pausing so that there will be little harm if it drops - Use packaging to prevent the load's sharp edges from damaging slings and don't allow lifting tackle to be damaged by being dropped, dragged from under loads or subjected to sudden loads - If using jib cranes, make sure any indicators for safe loads are working properly and set correctly for the job and the way the machine is configured. - Use outriggers where necessary - Employ a responsible slinger or banksman and use a recognised signalling system - Don't use unsuitable equipment such as makeshift, damaged, badly worn chains shortened with knots, kinked or twisted wire ropes, frayed or rotted fibre ropes - Don't exceed the safe working load of machinery or accessories like chains, slings and grabs - Don't lift a load if you doubt its weight or the adequacy of the equipment. Equipment maintenance explained Lifting equipment maintenance is a critical safety practice because it allows faults to be diagnosed early and corrected before injuries occur. But safety is not the only consideration when it comes to servicing. Effective maintenance also makes equipment more reliable, resulting in fewer costly breakdowns. So, it pays – quite literally – to establish a planned maintenance programme and a reporting procedure for workers who notice problems while working on machinery. LOLER demands that lifting equipment is maintained so that it remains safe and that maintenance is carried out safely. So, think about what hazards can occur if: - equipment or an attachment breaks during use; - plant starts up unexpectedly; - there is contact with materials that are normally enclosed within the machine; or - a load or part of a load falls. There are also other factors to consider when it comes to planning maintenance. For example, warns the HSE: "Failing to correctly plan and communicate clear instructions and information before starting maintenance can lead to confusion and can cause accidents."