The reason for this is quite simple – mentorship seems to be lacking. People are unaware of what a full and thorough inspection actually entails and lack the knowledge to actually conduct and document a full and thorough inspection. We have a lot of companies requesting our services and telling us they require a “load test” – basically apply the load and do a deflection with minimal inspection criteria. When we state we need to do a proper inspection we get told “the last guys didn’t have to do that why do you?”. Well to start - its law? We are required to conduct a proper inspection as per DMR 18(5) & (6) – remember we all referenced that?
INSPECTION & MAINTENANCE
machine? Even better is when we see the use of ticks and crosses? Remember this is a legally binding document – ticks and crosses are not regarded as thorough.
A lot of organisations use criteria from the incorporated standards to compile report templates – these are just guidelines and generally more criteria is needed to fully comply. LMI’s should have enough knowledge through standards, training, experience and mentorship to be able to identify all working parts and conduct a thorough examination and document the findings.
insurance assessor and DEL on the principles of this matter, without mentioning any names. All agreed that it is a total conflict of interest and completely defeats the point of an LME. All agreed that the organizations engaging in repairs/ maintenance cannot conduct the inspection and load test – they all made reference to the principle of the individuals or organizations “being the judge and the jury – and that is not in the interest of safety, transparency or quality assurance.”
We have had a conversation on this principle with a major
Therefore one must conclude that it is a complete conflict of interest
to offer the “full service” – and it is not in the interest of the user/ owner, safety, quality assurance or transparency amongst service providers. This means that the orgonisation doing repairs and maintenance must be completely independent and a separate legal entity with no association to the orgonisation doing the inspection and certification.
World Wide Load Testing Specialists, +27 (0) 31 572 4940, ops@wwlts.co.za, www.wwlts.co.za
Lifting Africa - Jan/Feb 2020
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