How to comply

The Duty Holder (Owner of the equipment) is to ensure that all equipment and processes are Risk Assessed by ***Competent Persons and that appropriate action is taken to address the findings of the Assessment

Magnets are to be assessed for :

• the electrical condition of the magnet - are there defects or weaknesses
• the mechanical condition of the magnet - are there defects or weaknesses
• the ultimate ****SWL of the equipment so that the operational SWL may be assessed

• Competent Persons must be deemed competent by virtue of attaining the appropriate theoretical and practical knowledge, together with experience that will enable them to detect defects or weaknesses in the equipment. This will be a combination of experience, training and qualifications
• Further information can be found in Section 294 of the Approved Code of Practice (ACOP)

**** SWL – after discussion with the H.S.E. and other Safety Advisors, the Authors have given special consideration to the way in which the lifting capability of a magnet can be assessed. The ultimate Safe Working Load depends on a combination of the electrical and mechanical condition of the magnet. The electrical condition may have deteriorated over use and mechanical damage often causes the face of the pole shoes to be uneven – causing less surface contact with the material being lifted. Lifting lugs and pins may have weaknesses not seen by the naked eye. The Authors recommend that the SWL be calculated by a “tear-off” test and a standard safety factor be applied. A simple lift test does not give the ultimate SWL of a magnet and could cause problems with Risk Assessments due to insufficient technical data being available (a crane could be overloaded as a magnet may pick up more weight when presented with different material)