Determination of the load capacity, verification of the correct installation and state of preservation.
According to the Italian decree-law 81/08 metal racks are to be fully considered as work equipment. The Employer is therefore obliged to comply with the general obligations regarding work equipment and in particular those contained in Title III., providing his employees with equipment that meets the requirements of the relevant regulations.
If the rack is equipped with a type plate, then it should be easy to trace the manufacturer and the related documents. If only the load capacity is specified, then the customer has to check whether he actually disposes of the relevant documents. If the documents are available, the inspection can be carried out pursuant to standard UNI EN 15635 on “static storage systems – application and maintenance of storage equipment”.
The inspection consists in checking the correct installation and state of preservation of the racks and in issuing conformity or non-conformity reports. In order to plan the activity, it is necessary to have the layout and/or photographs of the storage (height, length and the span).
If the rack is NOT equipped with neither type plate nor documents it is necessary to assess the load capacity through measurements, FEM numerical modelling and structural calculations on-site.
In order to plan the activity, it is necessary to have the following information: