Load Testing
Every company or owner of lifting machinery has a lawful obligation to have their lifting machinery load tested annually and inspected 6 monthly.
The Occupational Health & Safety Act, Act 85 of 1993, Driven Machinery Regulation 18 (5) states that:
“The user shall cause the whole installation and all working parts of every lifting machine to be thoroughly examined and subjected to a performance test, as prescribed by the standard to which the lifting machine was manufactured, by a person who has knowledge and experience of the erection and maintenance of the type of lifting machine involved or similar machinery and who shall determine the serviceability of the structures, ropes, machinery and safety devices, before they are put into use following every time they are dismantled and re-erected, and thereafter at intervals not exceeding 12 months:
Provided that in the absence of such prescribed performance test the whole installation of the lifting machine shall be tested with 110 % of the rated mass load, applied over the complete lifting range of such machine and in such a manner that every part of the installation is stressed accordingly.”
Check list to ensure the legality of your load test:
- The Company is accredited with the Department of Labour as a Lifting Machine Entity
- The Technician performing the load test must be accredited with the relevant authorities
- The load test is done in accordance with SANS 10388 (Inspection, test & examination of lift trucks)
The most common causes for failure during load testing:
In terms of the Occupational Health and Safety Act, 1993 ( Act 85 of 1993 ) and more so the Driven Regulation 18.6, it is a Statutory requirement ( by law ) that all lift trucks be subjected to a load test and inspection annually.
In terms of the South African National Standard 10388, numerous components and parts need to be examined and reported on.
Some of the most common causes for failure during testing:
The fallible components are not only limited to these, this is just an indication what we will be looking for with these components. A performance test must be performed at 110% of the rated capacity of the machine. This can be done by two methods, one being a static test and the other a dynamic test.
