Lifting specialists

lifting equipment
innovation

Lifting beams, frames, spreader beams & more.

Frequently Asked Questions

Britlift have been a leading lifting equipment engineering company for years. Over time we have dealt with a number of customer queries. If you’re new to the lifting industry you may find some of your questions answered below.
I own a fabrication company, or I know a fabrication company, why can’t I have them make me a lifting beam/frame, spreader beam, etc.?

Lifting equipment is specialised and safety critical equipment and as such is regulated under specific global standards, and the UK actually has some of the strictest requirements on lifting equipment in the world – this includes the design of, manufacture of, and inspection of lifting equipment!

Unless you are using a lifting equipment manufacturer then it is highly unlikely that the fabricator knows the regulations, and does the person that designed/specified the beam know about engineering, lifting legislation, and are they insured to offer such a service?

If I have a test certificate does this mean my lifting beam/frame is certified?

NO! Unfortunately, this is a common misconception. Since 2008 it has been regulation within the UK and EU that a Conformity certificate (conformity to the correct, and relevant legislation) is required for all lifting equipment and that the equipment itself must be CE marked and / or UKCA marked.

In declaring conformity (issuing a conformity certificate) the manufacturer is declaring that all relevant legislation has been met. If you haven’t met said legislation requirements, and there is an incident whilst using the item in question, the HSE will ask to see all the required certificates and information, and if it cannot be produced then there could be significant fines involved, or worse!

What are your standard lead times?

Modular Spreader Beams up to 150 tonne = Immediate, Off-the-shelf

Modular Spreader Beams over 150 tonne = 4-6 weeks

Modular Spreader Frames 8-34 tonne = 1-2 weeks

Lifting Beams and Lifting Frames = 3-4 weeks – 1-2 week Expedited Manufacture available, workload dependant and subject to relevant customer approval of general arrangement drawing(s).

What qualifications do your engineers have?

All Britlift engineers are degree qualified mechanical/structural engineers! Britlift’s Technical Director is a registered IEng, and member of MIET and IStructE.

He has been specifically, and solely designing lifting equipment for 10 years, was formerly a member of the LEEA technical committee, and was part of the team advising government on lifting legislation changes. Britlift hold £5m Professional Indemnity Insurance (as well as products, public and employee insurances) specifically as “Design Engineers”.

How much quality is built into a Britlift product?

To start with you can be assured that the product itself will have been through a rigorous and thorough design cycle which will confirm what size and grade materials need to be used in its manufacture.  If the item is of a bespoke nature, we will present the customer with a General Arrangement drawing which will be checked and approved by the customer and adds another level of assurance that you will be getting exactly what you need.

When it comes to the actual manufacture of the item you can be assured that we only use certified materials (sourced in the UK or Europe) which are sourced from approved suppliers.

Where welding is involved, we ensure that all welding is carried out in accordance with third party approved welding procedures (typically BS EN ISO 15614) and the welders themselves are qualified in accordance with a recognised standard (typically BS EN ISO 9606-1).

We can also offer additional enhanced quality characteristics if your project requires it including third party NDT, third party manufacturing survey, proof load testing (with third party witness if required), material certification, welding book, etc.

Do you have ISO9001, ISO14001 and ISO 45001?

YES! UKAS Accredited.

Centre for Assessment Ltd (UKAS 0129) confirms that this organisation has been audited and the requirements for registration have been met for the following scope:
The design, manufacture and supply of lifting solutions including associated consultancy, rig planning and training.

BS EN ISO 9001:2015 – Cert No. 22/0554

BS ISO 14001:2015 – Cert No. 22/0552

BS ISO 45001:2018 – Cert No. 22/0553

Can you design a bespoke forklift attachment?

Yes, not a problem.

Can you design a bespoke lifting point/lug/attachment?

Yes. We have designed and manufactured many bespoke lifting attachments over the years, from lifting electric car batteries to modular buildings, and even castor lifting wheels!

Can you design a bespoke A-frame gantry?

Yes, no matter how high, long, heavy, inside/outside, cantilevered, adjustable, mechanical/electrical.

Can you design a lifting beam/frame/spreader for use offshore/subsea?

Yes, any environment, any global lifting standard, any welding standards, any paint spec, any quality requirements.

I don’t really know exactly what I need……

Not a problem, give us a call to discuss your lift, load, environment, challenge. Always best to talk things through, but to give us a head start, please share (or have ready) max/min dimensions, max load weight, and any environmental or height restrictions.

I know exactly what I need…..

Perfect! Send us your design file (2D/3D, sketch, pictures, image) and let us do the rest. You have done the right thing in coming to a company such as Britlift, and not using a general fabricator – See question one above.

Do you supply rigging?

Yes we can supply rigging, but we can also design and specify a full (complete) rigging system and issue you with rigging drawings, that can form part of your lift plan/method statement.

We would like to manufacture overseas because that is where our load is being manufactured, but we would like a UK design consultancy calculations and drawing pack….

We can certainly help!

Please get in touch if you have any questions that have not been answered by these FAQs.

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