Mobile Plant Pre-Start Checklists
What is Mobile Plant?
Mobile plant is any plant that has some form of self-propelled movement that is normally under the direct control of a human operator. Mobile plant includes:
- earthmoving machinery (e.g. rollers, graders, scrapers, bobcats)
- excavators
- cranes
- hoists
- elevating work platforms
- concrete placement booms
- reach stackers and forklifts (WorkSafe).
What is a Mobile Plant Pre-Start Check?
A mobile plant pre-start check is a visual and can include a functional safety check performed from a checklist that helps ensure the safe operation of the plant. Mobile plant pre-start checklists are designed to reduce risks associated with start-up and daily operation.
A mobile plant pre-start checklist allows the operator to check the plant in a standardised way. The process begins with identifying faults, defects and potential hazards that could cause the plant to fail or become unsafe. Once identified, the faults or defects are documented and reported and either rectified, repaired, or the plant is ‘tagged out‘ until repairs are completed. This ensures that the equipment continues to operate safely and efficiently.
Why Do Pre-Start Checks?
Mobile Plant pre-start checks play an important part in plant maintenance, upkeep and risk management.
Safety Benefits of Mobile Plant Pre-Start Checklists
Pre-start checklists play a vital role in workplace safety. They provide a systematic approach to identifying faults, defects and hazards that could lead to accidents and injuries. A well-designed pre-start checklist either provided by the mobile plant provider or based on a risk assessment help ensures that the mobile plant is safe and reduces the risk of equipment failure or injury.
Financial Benefits of Mobile Plant Pre-Start Checklists
A pre-start checklist inspection helps identify potential maintenance issues early on. This allows making necessary repairs before they become costly and problematic. For example, it could mean avoiding unexpected breakdowns and saving money by fixing small issues before they lead to bigger ones.
Preventing breakdowns is just one benefit of conducting regular mobile plant and equipment pre-start checks. Others include:
- identify potential problems prior to use
- prevent unplanned downtime
- reduce repair costs
- avoid unnecessary mechanic call-out charges
- plan and schedule maintenance
- reduce costs associated with injury.
What are the Risks?
Some of the risks associated with the operating mobile plant include:
- the plant overturning
- objects falling on the operator
- the operator being ejected from the plant
- collisions with people or things (e.g. workers/pedestrians, other vehicles or plant, energised powerlines, property, infrastructure)
- mechanical or other failures (e.g. hydraulic failures, the release of hazardous substances).
Further, people required to operate or work around powered mobile plant may also be exposed to hazards such as excessive noise and vibration, hazardous fumes, fall hazards, and musculoskeletal hazards (e.g. access to plant, operator controls) (WorkSafe).
What Should be Included?
The list items in a pre-start checklist will differ depending on the type of mobile plant being checked. Suppliers of mobile plant often provide a list of safety checks to be conducted prior to use of the plant. Further, a mobile plant pre-start checklist can be developed from a risk assessment completed on the mobile plant and include electrical, mechanical, fluid levels, and safety feature checks and identifying damage that will affect the safe operation of the mobile plant.
A mobile plant pre-start checklist should capture the operator’s name completing the checklist, the date the checklist is being completed and the plant details. These list items include:
- Date
- Name
- Location/Address
- Plant Make & Model
- Plant ID or Registration Number
- Engine Hours.
Visual checklist items prior to startup typically include:
- Fluids (Fuel/Oil/Water)
- Tyres and/or Tracks
- Guards
- Screens & Mirrors
- Lights & Beacon
- Seat & Seat Belt
- Gauges
- Horn & Safety Devices
- Decals
- Hydraulics.
Functional checks typically include:
- Engine – runs smoothly
- Instruments
- Controls
- Function
- Steering
- Brakes
- Alarms and warning devices.
DIGI CLIP mobile forms – What We Do?
DIGI CLIP mobile forms is an easy-to-use inexpensive safety checklist app and cloud-based software. DIGI CLIP is used across different industries to capture safety data and other information to help improve safety, compliance and operational efficiencies.
DIGI CLIP will allow you to remove paper reporting from your business – no more lost, late missing or illegible checklists. The DIGI CLIP mobile app allows for images, comments and digital signatures to be added to checklists from a phone or tablet.
Follow this link if you want to know more about what we do and how we can help or send us a message?
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