CPCS Appointed Person A61
Lifting Operations Audit
Independent assessment of your lifting operations, procedures, and compliance. We evaluate how well your organisation manages lifting activities against LOLER, BS 7121, and industry best practice.
Why Audit Your Lifting Operations?
Lifting operations remain one of the highest-risk activities in construction. The consequences of failure are severe - serious injuries, fatalities, significant equipment damage, and prosecution.
Objective Assessment
An external expert view of your lifting arrangements, free from internal assumptions and familiarity blindness.
Gap Identification
Systematic identification of weaknesses in your systems before they result in incidents.
Benchmarking
Comparison against regulatory requirements, industry standards, and best practice.
Improvement Roadmap
Prioritised recommendations for strengthening your lifting operations.
Due Diligence Evidence
Documented evidence of proactive safety management - valuable for client prequalification and any regulatory scrutiny.
What We Assess
Governance & Management
- •Lifting operations policy and procedures
- •Roles and responsibilities
- •Competence arrangements
- •Supervision structures
Lift Planning
- •Lift plan quality and completeness
- •Appointed Person arrangements
- •Plan checking and approval processes
- •Documentation management
Equipment Management
- •Lifting equipment register
- •Thorough examination arrangements
- •Maintenance and inspection regimes
- •Defect reporting and rectification
Lifting Accessories
- •Accessories inventory and control
- •Examination and certification
- •Storage and maintenance
- •Issue and return procedures
Operational Practices
- •Pre-use checks
- •Briefings and communication
- •Slinger/signaller deployment
- •Exclusion zones and barriers
Training & Competence
- •Operator qualifications
- •Appointed Person competence
- •Slinger/signaller certification
- •Ongoing training and development
Audit Types
Desktop Audit
Review of your documented procedures, lift plans, certificates, and records. Identifies gaps in your management system.
Site Audit
Physical inspection of lifting operations, equipment condition, and working practices. Verifies that documented procedures are being followed.
Combined Audit
Both desktop and site elements for comprehensive assessment. Our recommended approach for maximum insight.
The Audit Process
Scoping
We discuss your operations and agree the audit scope - sites, equipment, procedures, focus areas.
Document Review
We review procedures, sample lift plans, equipment registers, certificates, and training records.
Site Inspection
We observe active lifting operations, equipment condition, and working practices.
Report
Comprehensive report with executive summary, detailed findings, and prioritised recommendations.
Debrief
Discussion of findings and recommendations with your team.
What We Look For
Lift Planning Quality
We assess whether your lift plans:
- • Address all LOLER requirements
- • Contain accurate calculations
- • Include adequate risk assessment
- • Provide workable method statements
Common findings:
- • Lift plans not site-specific
- • Calculations not verified
- • Inadequate ground bearing assessment
Equipment Management
We verify:
- • All lifting equipment is registered
- • Thorough examinations are current
- • Defects are reported and actioned
- • Accessories are properly controlled
Common findings:
- • Equipment used without current examination
- • Defect reports not actioned
- • Certificates not available on site
Competence Arrangements
We check:
- • Operators hold appropriate qualifications
- • Appointed Persons meet BS 7121 requirements
- • Slingers/signallers are certified
- • Training is current and documented
Common findings:
- • Expired or inappropriate qualifications
- • No evidence of AP competence
- • Training records incomplete
Working Practices
We observe:
- • Pre-lift briefings conducted
- • Lift plans communicated to lifting team
- • Exclusion zones established
- • Supervision adequate
Common findings:
- • Briefings rushed or skipped
- • Exclusion zones not maintained
- • Supervision absent or inadequate
Who Needs a Lifting Operations Audit?
Principal Contractors
Verify that your lifting operations management meets regulatory requirements and client expectations.
Subcontractors
Demonstrate to clients that your lifting arrangements are robust and compliant.
Crane Hire Companies
Assure customers of your operational standards and identify improvement opportunities.
Following Incidents
Understand what went wrong and how to prevent recurrence.
Seeking Accreditation
Evidence robust lifting arrangements for ISO, contractor prequalification, or supply chain membership.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does an audit take?
It depends on scope. A single site desktop audit might take a day. A comprehensive multi-site audit with site visits could take a week. We'll agree timescales during scoping.
How disruptive is a site audit?
We observe normal operations without interfering. We may ask questions of supervisors and operators, but aim to minimise impact on productivity.
What if you find serious issues?
We'll discuss significant concerns with you immediately rather than waiting for the final report. Safety issues that pose imminent risk should be addressed straight away.
How often should we be audited?
Annual audits are common for organisations with significant lifting operations. More frequent auditing may be appropriate for high-risk projects or following incidents.
Get Started
Contact us to discuss your lifting operations audit requirements.