Racking inspections. Racking is work equipment, and the duty is yours.
As the operator you are required to keep it in safe condition and have it inspected at suitable intervals. Most operators know about the annual expert inspection. Far fewer know they are expected to appoint someone internally and keep records, and that is the gap insurers find.
- Expert inspection
- Every 12 monthsAt least
- Recorded visual checks
- Often weekly
- Inspector
- SARISEMA Approved Rack Inspector
- Findings graded
- Red, amber, green
Three levels of check, not one.
Only the third is the one most operators book. The first two are yours to run, and the records they produce are what an auditor asks for. HSE guidance in HSG76 and BS EN 15635 describe all three.
- Step 1
Immediate checks
Triggered by any impact or incident, however minor it looks. The strike that bends a baseplate is rarely the one anyone reports.
Who: Whoever witnesses or causes it
- Step 2
Regular recorded visual checks
Carried out in-house at defined intervals, often weekly, by the person you appoint as responsible for racking safety, and recorded. This is the level most operators do not know exists.
Who: Your appointed person responsible for racking safety
- Step 3
Annual expert inspection
Carried out by the SEMA Approved Rack Inspectors we work with, who produce a written report classifying every finding by risk with an action and a timescale. Retained as audit evidence.
Who: External qualified inspector
What gets inspected.
The structure is only part of it. Aisle width against the truck actually in use, load notice accuracy and third-party components are where most reports find something the operator did not expect.
Damage limits in millimetres, beam deflection limits and load figures are set by your qualified inspector against the manufacturer's design data.
Uprights and frames
Dents, distortion, corrosion and verticality.
Beams and locking pins
Deflection, connector integrity and a safety pin at every beam end.
Baseplates and anchors
Fixings, slab condition and plate distortion.
Bracing and row spacers
Presence, condition and correct fixing.
Rack protection
Condition, coverage and whether it is transmitting load into the slab.
Decking and pallets
Condition, load overhang and pallet-to-beam compatibility.
Load notices
Presence, legibility and accuracy against the current configuration.
Environment
Aisle obstruction, aisle width against the truck in use, lighting and floor condition.
Non-original components
Any third-party parts and whether they are compatible with the system.
A report someone will actually read.
Findings classified by risk level, with the required action and a timescale against each, plus the inspector's credentials and the inspection date. Short enough to hand to an insurer, an auditor or an inspector without a covering note.
Red
Immediate action
Offload and isolate the location now. Replace before it returns to use.
Amber
Remedy within a defined period
Continue in use, replace within the timescale stated against the finding.
Green
Monitor
Acceptable now, recorded and re-checked at the next visual check.
Every finding located
Run, bay and level, so the repair team goes straight to it.
Action and timescale
What has to happen to each finding, and by when.
Inspector credentials
The inspector named, with their SARI qualification.
Inspection date
And the date the next expert inspection falls due.
Damage limits come from your inspector, not from a web page.
The allowable dent in an upright, the permitted beam deflection and the out of plumb tolerance depend on the system, the section and the manufacturer's design data. BS EN 15635 sets the method. Your inspector sets the figure for your racking.
Any page that quotes a single millimetre figure for every rack in every warehouse is guessing. The report you receive states the limit applied to each finding and which risk class it falls into.
- Upright damage, front face
- Set by your inspector
- Upright damage, side face
- Set by your inspector
- Bracing member damage
- Set by your inspector
- Beam deflection under load
- Set by your inspector
- Frame out of plumb
- Set by your inspector
- Beam connector and locking pin condition
- Set by your inspector
What happens if we fail an inspection.
A red finding is not a fine and not a closure. It is a location that has to come out of use until a component is replaced. Everything else on the report carries a timescale.
- Step 1
Offload and isolate
Red locations are emptied and taped off at once, before the inspector leaves site.
- Step 2
Quote from the same visit
Components are identified across brands, and the repair quotation follows the report.
- Step 3
Replace, never straighten
Damaged components are replaced like for like, bay by bay, with only affected locations offloaded.
- Step 4
Re-check and release
The location is checked before it goes back into use, and the repair is recorded.
- Step 5
Amber inside its timescale
Amber findings are scheduled within the period on the report. Green is monitored at the visual checks.
Repairs are covered in full on racking repairs. Not sure which system you own? Use the rack identification guide, because components do not interchange between manufacturers.
How often, and who is qualified.
An expert inspection at least every 12 months, more often where traffic is heavy or the damage rate is high. Between those visits, recorded visual checks by your appointed person, at an interval set by your risk assessment and often weekly.
The expert inspection should be carried out by a technically competent person. A SEMA Approved Rack Inspector (SARI) has been assessed against exactly that, which is why a SEMA racking inspection is what insurers usually ask to see. The inspectors we work with are SARI qualified, and the visit is booked twelve months ahead at handover so it cannot lapse quietly.
- After any impact
- ImmediateWhoever saw it
- Visual checks
- Often weeklyAppointed person
- Expert inspection
- 12 monthsAt least, by a SARI
- Work equipment law
- PUWER 1998
- HSE guidance
- HSG76
- Standard
- BS EN 15635
Records to keep.
The annual report is the document everyone has. The other five are the ones an insurer or an HSE inspector asks for next, and the ones most often missing.
Appointed person
Visual check log
Impact records
Expert inspection reports
Repair records
Load notices and drawings
Inspect, repair, protect, train, re-inspect.
Each stage produces the next. Repeated damage in the same location is a symptom, and the cause is usually layout, systematic overloading or truck and aisle geometry.
- Step 1Inspect (this page)Annual expert inspection, plus the recorded visual checks your appointed person runs.
- Step 2RepairDamaged components replaced like for like across brands, never straightened.
- Step 3ProtectRack protection inside, Armco barriers in the yard, fitted where the strikes actually happen.
- Step 4TrainAwareness course so the people who see damage first can classify and report it.
- Step 5Re-inspectAnnual date set at handover, so nothing lapses quietly.
What the same visit can cover.
One visit produces the report, the repair quotation and the protection recommendations. Each of these has its own page.
Inspection and repair questions.
An expert inspection at least every 12 months, carried out by a technically competent person such as the SEMA Approved Rack Inspectors (SARI) we work with. That is supported by regular recorded visual checks carried out in-house by the person you appoint as responsible for racking safety, often weekly, plus an immediate check after any impact or incident.
Racking is work equipment under PUWER 1998, which requires equipment exposed to conditions that cause deterioration to be inspected at suitable intervals by a competent person. HSE guidance in HSG76 and the standard BS EN 15635 set out how: an appointed person responsible for racking safety, regular recorded visual checks, and an expert inspection at least every 12 months. An HSE racking inspection visit will ask to see all three.
The operator of the racking, not the supplier or the inspector. You are expected to appoint a named Person Responsible for Racking Safety (PRRS), keep records of their visual checks and act on findings within the timescales in the expert report.
Findings are classified by risk level with a required action and a timescale against each. The highest classification means the location is offloaded and isolated at once, the damaged components are replaced, and the location is re-checked before it goes back into use. Repairs are quoted from the same visit.
That depends on the classification the inspector records. The highest classification requires immediate offloading and isolation. Lower classifications carry a defined timescale for remedy rather than immediate isolation, and the report states which applies to each location.
No. Damaged cold-formed racking components are replaced rather than heated, straightened or welded in the field, because those processes alter the material properties the design capacity depends on.
No. Component replacement is normally carried out bay by bay with only the affected locations offloaded. The method statement sets out exactly which locations must be cleared and for how long.
The name of the appointed person responsible for racking safety, their regular visual check records, records of any impact and the action taken, and the annual expert inspection reports retained as audit evidence, together with the repair records that close each finding.
Both are delivered with the SEMA Approved Rack Inspectors we work with. That is the qualification the annual expert inspection is expected to carry, and it is the reason the awareness course is taught by people who inspect racking daily rather than by a general trainer.
No. It teaches staff to spot damage, classify it by risk level and report it correctly, which is what makes the in-house visual checks defensible. Expert inspection remains a qualified external role.
Annual inspections booked 12 months ahead
Book an inspection.
One visit produces the report, the repair quotation and the protection recommendations. The re-inspection date is set at the same time.