Are your workshop’s vehicle hoists compliant?

What you need to know about Non Destructive Tests for car lifts

As an employer you are responsible for showing a duty of care towards your employees. You want to sleep at night knowing that you have done all you can to keep your staff safe.

One safeguard that’s widely recommended in the industry is to have your hoists undergo a Non Destructive Test (NDT) after 10 years of operation. An NDT is also recommended in the Australian Standards AS/NZS2550.9 and AS2550.1.

At Levanta we take safety very seriously. We believe that if you have followed the recommendation of the Australian Standards you are have safeguarded yourself and your business in the best possible way – while demonstrating you have done everything you can to comply to the standards.

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It’s not only an important safety consideration. Australian law stipulates that you must ensure compliance for your workshop by having an NDT for every hoist.

Automotive workshop safety for your staff, customers, and equipment

A Non Destructive Test is an x-ray of the structure of the hoist including all the welds to check structural integrity. With the weight of vehicles and the amount of work a hoist typically does each day, it’s important to check that your hoists have no chance of failure.

Non Destructive Testing isn’t just a matter of “do it once and then forget it”. After your hoists’ first 10 year NDT, you will need to have an NDT done every 5 years to ensure there is no further deterioration as time progresses.

So even once your hoists have first been tested (and you’ve paid for any faults to be rectified), you’ll still need to make allowance for subsequent future expenses.

And it’s not just the price of testing to factor into your thinking. There’s business downtime and the cost of parts and labour to consider too.

Some car dealerships find it easier to write their hoists off over 5-8 years, which gives them an easy option to simply replace hoists as they approach the 10 year age mark.

An alternative to NDTs for your vehicle workshop

Instead of committing to the expense of a mandatory NDT – along with the indeterminate cost of rectifying whatever faults are found – it may be a better business choice to instead simply outfit your workshop with all-new hoist equipment.

With the latest gear, your workshop will enjoy many benefits over your former setup, such as increased efficiency, greater appeal to qualified staff, and better ability to meet your OEM’s Corporate Identity requirements.

To help you decide whether an NDT or new hoists is the best option for your business, we’ve put together a free checklist that runs through the pros and cons of each alternative.

It’s not a sales pitch. It’s designed to be an accurate summary of your options as a workshop business owner or manager, to help you make the right decision for your situation.

Find the best way to ensure your workshop is compliant

To find out more about whether an NDT or a new fitout of workshop hoists is the best option for your business, get in touch with Levanta today. Our garage equipment experts will explain your options and help you decide on the best way forward for your workshop business.

Call Levanta now on 1300 577 541 or contact your local branch here to find out more about the latest technology vehicle hoists for your vehicle workshop.

Workshop hoist servicing and maintenance

The importance of preventive maintenance for vehicle hoists

As a vehicle workshop service manager, you’ll no doubt be aware of the need for preventive maintenance for vehicles. After all, the service you’re offering to your clients is helping to minimise repair costs, and keeping vehicle down time to a minimum.

It’s no different for the actual vehicle hoists in your workshop. As you know, efficient vehicle throughput is absolutely crucial for the profitable running of your service department. And that means that if workshop equipment breaks down, you won’t be able to service vehicles until it’s fixed – and your bottom line will suffer as a result.

Of course, one of the best ways to ensure you don’t have a problem with your car hoist is to prevent breakdowns from occurring in the first place.

The answer? With preventive maintenance for car hoists, you can ensure that equipment breakdowns are minimised, and you have service capacity available when it’s needed – helping maximise vehicle throughput for your auto workshop.

Service contracts keep hoists in top working order

One of the most cost-effective ways to service your workshop equipment is to commit to an ongoing 12 month service plan. This will allow you to plan your car hoist maintenance around your busiest times, rather than simply having to repair a broken down lift – while also doing without one of your auto lifts at potentially the busiest time of day.

Another advantage of ongoing service plans is that, because a hoist service takes up to one hour for each hoist, it’s a significant time cost to your business. By planning ahead for regular servicing, you can choose the exact time for your hoists to be serviced – allowing you to plan around your workflow for the minimum interruption.

What’s more, with a 12 month service contract you’ll know your costs are locked in for the period – which helps when you’re budgeting for the year’s service costs. You can even lock in a service plan for up to five years, allowing you to plan ahead with certainty.

And because your car hoist maintenance service provider is responsible for the frequency of your hoist servicing, there’s no need to keep track of when your hoists are due for a service. The service provider will simply schedule service dates across the term of your contract.

Preventive maintenance offers safety and reliability

By setting up a regular service plan for your car lifts, you can rest assured that your vehicle hoists will meet applicable Australian Workplace Health & Safety laws.

These regulations mandate that your vehicle hoists must be serviced at least every 12 months – and of course, unannounced inspections can happen at any time. To avoid having to respond to a ‘make good’ order for your workshop safety at short notice, it makes sense to have an ongoing maintenance plan for car hoists in place. To make sure you meet this requirement, ask your hoist service provider about setting up an annual maintenance program.

It also pays to ask the question, “Who is responsible for servicing my car hoist?”. If your workshop hoist supplier isn’t currently providing the maintenance services themselves, they may be sub-contracting the service to another business. In that case, what standard of servicing are you really getting? Does it meet Australian Standards? Is this arrangement the best way to ensure vehicle lift safety for your customers, your employees, and your investment.

To find out more about car lift maintenance and how we can help make your workshop safer and more efficient, call Levanta on 1300 577 541 or use the contact forms here.