Lifts with machine rooms must have guarding on all machinery to ensure the safety of everyone who enter the motor room. Whilst the latest rules on machine guarding may not seem relevant to the use of your building, the regulations have been created for the safety of engineers and insurance inspectors in mind and is something which should be taken seriously.
With this in mind, we have put together a short guide so you can understand the rules and regulations and are able to make the correct decisions.
Engineers who maintain your lift or who conduct the LOLER testing can be at risk of serious injury while in your machine room or lift shaft. Safeguarding the engineers who have come to service or examine your lift is why these new rules have been brought in.
“the person undertaking the work of examining and maintaining a lift should be able to do so without being exposed to undue risks”
As the owner or person who runs a building, you are, legally, a ‘duty holder’ which means you have responsibilities for those who use and work in the building for which you are responsible. The law makes it very clear that people have a right to work in places where risks to their health are properly controlled. It also makes clear that lift owners (or duty holders) should not assume that their lifts are compliant with the Lifts Directive, Machinery Directive EN81 and UK legislation.
THE EFFECTS ON YOUR BUSINESS
In order to safeguard your lift engineer, the lift may need to be isolated (switched off) before the engineer can start work. This will inevitably mean that your lift will be out of action for your customers, staff or goods for a longer period, which may cause inconvenience to you, your customers and staff, depending on the nature of your business.
Even where the lift is old and only needs to comply with regulations which were in place when the lift was installed, if the machinery is considered dangerous by your LOLER inspector, he/she will recommend that it is guarded.
THE REGULATIONS WHICH APPLY TO LIFTS AND MACHINE GUARDING
- Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974
- Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 (LOLER) – safe operation of the lift, rather than inspection and maintenance
- Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations (PUWER) – the way in which workers use and interact with the lift
- EN81:20 – machine guarding
- BS EN ISO 12100:2010 – general principles for machine design. Risk assessment and risk reduction.
- BS EN ISO 14120:2015 – general requirements for the design and construction of fixed and movable guards
- BS EN ISO 13857:2008 – safety distances to prevent hazard zones being reached by upper and lower limbs
REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS FOR MACHINE GUARDING
All guards must:
- be suitable for the purpose for which they are provided
- be of good construction, sound material and adequate strength
- be maintained in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair
- not give rise to any increased risk to health or safety
- not be easily bypassed or disabled
- be situated at sufficient distance from the danger zone
- not unduly restrict the view of the operating cycle of the machinery, where such a view is necessary
- be so constructed or adapted that they allow operations necessary to fit or replace parts and for maintenance work, restricting access so that it is allowed only to the area where the work is to be carried out and, if possible, without having to dismantle the guard or protection device.
If parts of your current machinery are exposed, the risk to the engineer is considered dangerous and the machinery must be turned off before the engineer is within 1.5m of the machinery. Due to the size of the motor room, this may mean turning the lift off before entering the machine room. The impact of this scenario is that it is impossible for the engineer to safely see how the lift is running and make adjustments.
PLEASE GET IN TOUCH if you would like to discuss the requirements for your lift, or for a quote.
