Lifting equipment - General

Handling equipment can be found at all levels of economic activity, whether industrial or commercial. Not only are they present during the transitory phases of material and product production cycles, they are also essential complements to transport operations. As a result, they are extremely varied, depending on the materials and products to be moved and the mode of transport chosen. Among them, lifting equipment represents a large family of machines of all sizes, available in a number of types to suit the wide variety of jobs to be carried out.

The lifting function as defined by European Directive 89/392 of January 14, 1989 (see ) corresponds to the change in level of loads or persons, without however fixing a minimum or maximum limit. However, the transposition decree of June 9, 1993, laying down the conditions for checking lifting equipment, stipulates that conveyors, transporters and pallet trucks which lift loads off the ground just to the height required for moving them, are not to be considered as lifting equipment. Lifting heights can vary from a few meters to several dozen or, exceptionally, several hundred meters.

The charges are lifted:

• either with a hook or a gripping tool (clamp, grab, spreader, etc.), for suspended loads;

• or with forks, platforms, trays, etc. for supported loads (more commonly referred to as load-bearing).

The value of the maximum load these devices can move defines their capacity.

Table 1 lists the devices covered by this article.