Pre-operation inspection and testing
This domain tests what an operator checks before the first use of a shift and how to react when a check fails. It separates operator daily checks from statutory examinations and planned maintenance.
Daily pre-use checks
- Walk around the hoist: foundation, base enclosure, mast sections, tie-in anchors, bolts, rack, pinion, guide rollers, gates, landing protection, signage and lighting.
- Look for oil leaks, loose panels, cracked welds, bent parts, worn teeth, debris on the rack, and unauthorised modifications.
- Check the cage: rating plate, load chart, gate, emergency stop, controls, communication, fire extinguisher where provided, and housekeeping.
- Function-test the emergency stop, gate interlocks, normal and final limits, brake, horn and communication. Use the manufacturer's or site's stated test method.
- Record the result. A defect means stop, isolate, tag and report.
Relationship to other inspections
Daily checks are operator checks. They do not replace the competent examiner's statutory thorough examination, nor the competent person's planned maintenance. Finding a clean statutory certificate does not remove the need for the daily check.
Worked example
During the brake check at a landing, the operator observes the cage drift downward before the brake holds. The cage later holds and the shift is busy. Decision: stop use. Brake drift indicates the service brake is not holding correctly. The hoist must be isolated and reported; maintenance must adjust or repair the brake, and the brake must be retested before return to service. A later successful stop does not cancel an intermittent brake fault.
Traps that cost marks
- Ticking the checklist without physically testing the interlocks and emergency stop.
- Testing the final limit by overrunning with people in the cage.
- Ignoring an intermittent fault because the hoist "works now".
- Using the hoist while waiting for a replacement part without a formal out-of-service decision.