Vehicle mounted cranes play a vital role in various industries, including construction, utilities, and logistics; offering efficient lifting capabilities and avoiding manual handling. However, to ensure the safe operation of these cranes, it is essential to comply with relevant vehicle mounted crane regulations and advisable to comply with relevant standards. As in all work environments, some regulations are mandatory by law and any deviation could lead to prosecution. Regulations tend to be all-encompassing and leave a lot to interpretation as they have to cover so much and stay unchanged for years, and are difficult to enact and repeal as this is done by Parliament.
Up-to-date and specific guidance for vehicle mounted cranes comes in the form of British Standards, Codes of Practice and best practices from interested parties such as the Association of Lorry Loaders, Manufacturers and Importers (ALLMI).
Penny Hydraulics has 45 years of experience designing and manufacturing vehicle mounted lifting equipment and complies with the Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations. This set of all-encompassing regulations covers aspects such as safety factors, CE/UKCA marking, hazard elimination and operation manual content but is only relevant to designers and manufacturers. Compliance is demonstrated by the affixing of the CE/UKCA mark to the product; owners and operators should always look for this as using lifting equipment that is not CE/UKCA marked would be against the law.
Crane owners and operators also need to be aware of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations (PUWER) that applies to all work equipment and its sister document the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations (LOLER) that fleshes out the particular requirements for work equipment that involves lifting. LOLER is quite concise and easy to read for a set of regulations but more detail is added by BS 7121-1 the Code of Practice for the Safe Use of Cranes. This serves as a crucial standard for planning and conducting lifting operations with cranes, however this is not just relevant for lorry loader cranes.
In general, LOLER requires that:
Details of means of compliance is in BS 7121.
The industry and product-specific guidance come from the Association of Lorry Loaders, Manufacturers & Importers, ALLMI. Their website has guidance set out in a series of documents that is open to all and free. Penny Hydraulics is an active member of ALLMI and complies with its procedures and protocols so that purchasers of our products can be sure that they have the backing of the leading organisation in the sector.
For more information and guidance regarding Penny Hydraulics and our Vehicle Mounted Cranes, contact our team of professionals today.
