The range of lifting equipment covered by LOLER (Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations) is very wide and the Regulations can apply across all industry sectors; from healthcare to construction, most industries and commercial activity will use some kind of lifting equipment.
Technological progress has meant that innovative, often complex and powerful lifting equipment is now available for use. Nevertheless, whether it is modern and complex or more traditional lifting equipment, LOLER will apply if it is used by employees or the relevant self-employed at work. If you are self-employed and your work poses no risk to the health and safety of others, then health and safety law may not apply to you. HSE has guidance to help you understand if the law applies.
There are three key terms used in reference to the Regulations: ‘lifting equipment’; ‘lifting operations’; and ‘the load’.
Lifting equipment is any work equipment for lifting and lowering loads, and includes any accessories used in doing so (such as attachments to support, fix or anchor the equipment).
Examples of lifting equipment include:
- Overhead cranes and their supporting runways
- Patient hoists
- Motor vehicle lifts
- Vehicle tail lifts and cranes fitted to vehicles
- A building cleaning cradle and its suspension equipment
- Goods and passenger lifts
- Telehandlers and forklifts
Lifting Accessories
Lifting accessories are pieces of equipment that are used to attach the load to lifting equipment, providing a link between the two. Any lifting accessories used between lifting equipment and the load may need to be taken into account in determining the overall weight of the load.
Examples of lifting accessories include:
- Fibre or rope slings
- Chains (single or multiple leg)
- Hooks
- Eyebolts
- Spreader beams
- Magnetic and vacuum devices
Lifting Operations
This is a term defined by LOLER regulation 8(2): ‘In this regulation “lifting operation” means an operation concerned with the lifting or lowering of a load.’
The Load
The load includes any material, people or animals (or any combination of these) that is lifted by the lifting equipment. Loads are often provided with permanent or semi-permanent fixed or attached points for lifting. In most cases, these are considered to be part of the load.
Examples of loads include:
- Loose bulk materials
- Sacks, bags, pallets and stillages
- Discrete items (such as a large concrete block
- Machinery and any permanently attached lifting eyes
- A skip and the lugs fixed to its side
Planning And Organising Lifting Operations
Lifting operations can often put people at great risk of injury, as well as incurring great costs when they go wrong. It is therefore important to properly resource, plan and organise lifting operations so they are carried out in a safe manner. Each of these elements requires a person or people with sufficient competence to be involved at each step. These people should have sufficient theoretical and practical knowledge of the work and equipment in question, as well as the requirements of the law, to be able to do this properly. For complex and high-risk operations, the planning and organisation should be extensive and meticulous.
Strength and Stability
Lifting equipment must be of adequate strength for the proposed use. The assessment of this should recognise that there may be a combination of forces to which the lifting equipment, including the accessories, will be subjected. The lifting equipment used should provide an appropriate ‘factor of safety’ against all foreseeable types of failure. Where people are lifted, the factor of safety is often higher. Any lifting equipment selected should not be unduly susceptible to any of the foreseeable failure modes likely to arise in service, for example fracture, wear or fatigue.
Positioning and Installation
The position of mobile lifting equipment or the location of fixed installations can have a dramatic effect on the risks involved in a lifting operation. It is vital to take all practical steps to avoid people being struck by loads or the equipment itself during use. The equipment should also be positioned to minimise the need to lift over people. Measures should be taken to reduce the risk of load drift (eg spinning, swinging, etc); and of the load falling freely or being released unintentionally. Many different methods have been developed to prevent falling loads, including the use of multiple ropes or chains, hydraulic check valves and nets for palletised loads.
Working under Suspended Loads
Where it can be avoided, loads should not be suspended over occupied areas. Where it cannot be avoided, the risks to people must be minimised by safe systems of work and appropriate precautions. Where loads are suspended for significant periods, the area below them should be classed as a danger zone, where access is restricted.
Supervision of Lifting Operations
Supervision should be proportionate to the risk, taking account of the competencies and experience of those undertaking the lift. Many everyday lifting operations do not require direct supervision (eg experienced fork-lift operators undertaking routine lifts), although there may be circumstances where supervisory assistance may be required to manage risk (eg lifting an unusual load, crossing a public road etc). From time to time, employers may need to monitor the competence of workers undertaking lifting operations to ensure they continue to be carried out safely.
Lifting Equipment used for lifting people at work
People can be at greater risk of harm when they are lifted by machinery (eg operators of mobile elevated work platforms may collide with overhead structures and mobile access equipment may be at higher risk of overturning, potentially resulting in serious or fatal injuries). The increased risks for lifting equipment require greater levels of safety in their:
- Design and manufacture
- Use and maintenance
- Inspection and thorough examination
Thorough Examinations and Inspections of Lifting Equipment
Safe and successful lifting operations depend, in large part, on the continued safety of the lifting equipment and accessories that are used. Failures in this kind of equipment can result in significant or even fatal injuries. Health and safety law therefore places a number of specific obligations on those providing, controlling and using lifting equipment to properly manage these risks.