WEBBING SLINGS NOT ACORDING TO CURRENT STANDARD

NO
CE!!!

ABSOLITE STANDARD

FOS NOT
ACCEPTABLE

WHO INSPECTED ?
SIGNATURE IDENTICAL
CORRECT STANDARD AND FOS INCORRECT STANDARD AND FOS

INCORRECT STANDARD , MARKING NO FOS 5 TONNE SLING WITH 4 STRIPES WHICH

DEMONSTRATE SWL OF 4T HOW EVER ITS
LABELED AS 5 T
The first set of regulations we should note are
the Management of Health and Safety at
Work Regulations 1999. They contain
requirements for training which we need to
note. An employer is required to provide
suitable training or instruction in the use of
equipment. This has to be based on the
manufacturer's/supplier's safe use
information. People who use the equipment
must undergo the training provided and must
then only use equipment for which they have
been trained and only use it in the manner
and for the duty that they have been trained.

The rest of the legislation we need to look at

is the result of European Directives.
Directives are not law but are an instruction to
the governments of the member states of
European Community to introduce suitable
legislation. There are two types of Directive,
those intended to remove barriers to trade
and allow the free movement of goods or
people within the Community and those to
introduce safety measures. In the case of
those that are intended to remove barriers the
legislation must enact the Directive without
change, so that the legislation is the same
throughout Europe. In the case of safety
Directives, they contain minimum safety
requirements which the member state must
introduce in its legislation but they can
enhance this with local requirements, so
whilst similar the legislation varies from nation
to nation.

One of the first type, The Machinery

Directive, is of direct relevance to lifting
equipment. This directive has also been
adopted by the EFTA countries so is common
in law throughout the greater Europe, known
as the European Economic Area (EEA). It is
implemented in the UK by the Supply of
Machinery (Safety) Regulations. This
legislation only applies to the manufacturer, if
he is based in the EEA or the initial importer
into the EEA if the manufacturer is based
outside, whom it refers to as the responsible
person.

Section 4 gives the essential safety

requirements to be met in addressing the
hazards of a lifting operation. It requires the
responsible person to issue an EC
Declaration of Conformity and mark the
item with the CE mark to show he has met
the essential safety requirements and
complied fully with the Directive. The easiest
way for a manufacturer to comply is by
working to harmonised European Standards. I
will mention them later.

The Directive uses one or two terms which

may be new to us, such as Lifting
Accessories, which generally means what
we used to call lifting tackle or lifting gear,
and chain and wire rope slings fall under this
heading, and Coefficient of Utilisation or
Working Coefficient to mean factor of
safety.

The other two sets of regulations which

concern us both come from the Amended
Work Equipment Directive. The first is the
Provision and Use of Work Equipment
Regulations, known as PUWER, which enact
the Directive and must be complied with,
even if more detailed regulations exist. The
second set of regulations are the Lifting
Operations and Lifting Equipment
Regulations, usually referred to as LOLER,
which augment the Directive with the UK
national requirements for lifting operations
and lifting equipment.

Both of these sets of regulations are

published with an Approved Code of
Practice, ACoP for short, and guidance
notes to help with the day to day
implementation.