Inspections and maintenance records: why quality at Luibl Rental saves time

Anyone renting construction machinery is essentially buying one thing: operational safety. A machine that is on site but not ready for use causes costs that exceed the rental price several times over. Inspections and tests are more than bureaucratic box-ticking – they are documented proof that a machine is technically sound before the first operator gets in.

For Luibl Rental, complete inspection and maintenance documentation is not a service extra but a basic requirement for every machine handover. What this means in concrete terms – for the legal certainty of the renting company and for project logistics on site – is explained in this article.

Legal basis: what applies to which equipment?

For aerial work platforms, the legal basis is formed by occupational safety rules (Act No. 124/2006 Coll.) in conjunction with Decree No. 508/2009 Coll. on inspections and tests of technical equipment. Aerial work platforms are designated lifting equipment, group A; the rules define the scope of checks, the intervals (inspection once a year and test every two years under Annex 7, unless the manufacturer specifies shorter intervals), the requirements for the certified inspection technician and the documentation obligations.

For telehandlers and forklifts, occupational safety rules for industrial trucks also apply, as well as – specifically for telehandlers – FEM 4.004, the technical guideline for manufacturers and operators of telehandlers. Among other things, it governs the checking of load management systems and stability verification.

Government Regulation No. 392/2006 Coll. (work equipment) in conjunction with Decree No. 508/2009 Coll. stipulates: work equipment with increased risk must be checked by an authorised person at the prescribed intervals – and additionally after every major repair or modification to the machine.

What is checked in concrete terms

The recurring inspection and test of aerial work platforms includes, among other things:

• Load-bearing structure and welds for cracks, deformation and corrosion

• Hydraulic system: lines, cylinders, valves, leak test under load

• Emergency lowering and emergency stop functions – function of all safety circuits

• Tilt sensor and overload cut-off system (load moment limiter)

• Control units in the basket and at the base: priority logic, emergency operation

• Tyres, chassis, drive and braking system

• Check of all labels, warning and information signs

• Completeness of operating manuals and load charts on the machine

For telehandlers, the FEM 4.004 check adds specific checks of the telescopic boom system, the attachment interfaces and the dynamic load management system. On roto models with swivelling outriggers, outrigger force measurement and load chart synchronisation are checked separately.

Inspection sticker and inspection records: documents with legal consequences

Every machine in the Luibl Rental fleet carries a valid inspection sticker on delivery and comes with the associated inspection report. The inspection records for the aerial work platform are kept with the machine – not in the office.

This is not a detail. During random checks by the labour inspectorate, proof of inspection must be presented directly at the place of use. If documents are missing, the machine is legally deemed not to have proof of inspection – regardless of whether the inspection actually took place.

Maintenance ≠ inspection

The inspection and test establishes whether a machine is safe at the time of the check. Maintenance, on the other hand, is the active process that ensures a machine remains reliable between inspection dates. Both aspects are independent of each other – and both are an integral part of fleet management at Luibl Rental.

Specific maintenance scope in the rental fleet

Maintenance intervals are based on manufacturer specifications and are adjusted according to operating hours and conditions of use:

• Hydraulic oil: changed according to manufacturer specifications, not by calendar time across the board – sooner with intensive high-load use or extreme temperatures

• Scissors and lifting linkage on scissor lifts: chain check for change in length (elongation), inspection of pivot pins and bearing bushes for wear

• Tyres and track drives: tread depth, tyre condition on solid rubber machines (check for crack patterns), track tension and roller wear on spider lifts

• Electric drive systems on electric platforms: battery condition, charging curves, insulation resistance of control lines

• Attachments on telehandlers: fork tines for bending and cracking, hydraulic hoses of quick couplers

Luibl Rental replaces wear parts proactively – not only when a defect occurs. This avoids the worst case: a machine standing idle on site for which a replacement has to be organised at short notice.

Long-term rental: inspections as part of the contract

For rental contracts lasting several months, inspections and tests are included – at no extra cost and with no organisational effort for the renter. Luibl Rental coordinates the date, the authorised person and the documentation. The renter receives the updated inspection report; the machine remains in operation.

A plant engineering company from southern Germany rents a fleet of four roto telehandlers and two diesel scissor lifts from Luibl Rental for a six-month turnaround at a chemical plant. The site is subject to the safety standards of a tier-1 industrial customer: all rental machines must be ready for use every day, and proof of every maintenance job must be available immediately on request from plant security.

The challenge: Conventional rental contracts pass the documentation obligation on to the renter. This means: maintenance records have to be compiled by the renter, inspection intervals monitored independently and proof provided manually during checks.

The solution with Luibl Rental: All six machines are handed over with a complete inspection and maintenance history – physically on the machine and available digitally on request. Luibl Rental coordinates the on-site maintenance service by operating hours, not by calendar. After three months, a mobile technician carries out the scheduled hydraulic change and chain inspection without interrupting turnaround operations.

During a random check by the labour inspectorate, all proof of inspection for the fleet can be presented immediately. Result: no site shutdown, no complaints, no production interruption.

Machine-side safety: what Luibl Rental provides

Every machine handed over by Luibl Rental has a valid inspection sticker and all safety-relevant devices in working order. These include:

• Anchor points in the basket (inspected and certified according to manufacturer specifications)

• Complete emergency lowering and emergency stop functions

• Current load chart and operating manual on the machine

• All warning and information signs legible and complete

Personal safety: the operator's obligation

Full-body harnesses and fall protection PPE are not rented out by Luibl Rental – they are the operator's responsibility. This is not a gap in service but a matter of principle: personal protective equipment must be adjusted to the individual's body size, inspected regularly and familiar to the wearer. A harness provided by the rental company does not reliably meet any of these requirements.

Anyone using telescopic boom lifts, articulating boom lifts or truck-mounted platforms must provide inspected fall protection PPE to EN 361 with an energy absorber (EN 355) or a self-locking fall arrester for each operator. On handover, Luibl Rental actively points out this obligation – especially if no information on available PPE was given when ordering.

For scissor lifts, fall protection PPE is not mandatory in all cases. As part of the risk assessment under occupational safety rules (Act No. 124/2006 Coll.) and the rules for work at height under Government Regulation No. 147/2013 Coll., the operator determines whether the situation (e.g. work over water, wind load, increased tipping risk) requires a different arrangement.

Anyone renting electric aerial work platforms has to deal with two independent inspection obligations: the mechanical inspection and test of the lifting equipment under Decree No. 508/2009 Coll. and the check of the electrical equipment in line with applicable Slovak safety rules and STN EN standards.

In everyday rental practice, these are regularly confused or combined. Both must be documented separately, and both proofs must be available during checks.

What the electrical equipment check requires

The applicable rules require checks of portable and fixed electrical equipment. As portable electrical equipment, electric aerial work platforms fall within this scope. Checks are carried out according to the relevant STN EN standards:

• Visual inspection: housing, cable condition, plugs, charging socket for mechanical damage

• Protective conductor test: resistance between protective conductor and accessible conductive parts

• Insulation resistance measurement: between conductors and protective conductor at test voltage

• Functional test: charging electronics, control circuits, emergency stop relay, travel enable

• Measurement of protective conductor current or substitute leakage current depending on machine type

The inspection interval depends on the conditions of use. On construction sites, outdoors or with exposure to moisture, it may be shorter than in dry indoor halls. The operator sets the interval as part of the risk assessment under the applicable rules.

Who is authorised to carry out the check?

The electrical equipment check may only be carried out by a person with professional competence in electrical engineering under the applicable rules. A certified inspection technician for the mechanical inspection of lifting equipment is not automatically qualified for this – both qualifications must be proven separately.

Relevance in halls and sensitive environments

Electric scissor lifts are preferably used in logistics centres, pharmaceutical and food production and data centres. It is precisely there that proof of electrical checks is especially critical: operating permits for these building types regularly require complete documentation of all electrical equipment used.

Before use in such environments, you should explicitly ask whether current proof of the electrical equipment check is available for the rental machine. Luibl Rental provides this proof on request.

The equation is simple: a machine without a valid inspection and test must not be operated. Anyone using a machine without proof risks a fine from the labour inspectorate, a ban on operation and, in the event of damage, the loss of insurance cover.

Luibl Rental does not address this risk with promises but with documentation. Every rental machine is handed over with complete proof of inspection. Maintenance intervals are actively managed. In long-term rental contracts, inspections and tests are contractually included.

For projects with high safety requirements – plant sites, large construction sites, industrial turnarounds – this is not an optional added value but the entry requirement.

Questions about inspection documentation, maintenance intervals for specific machines or long-term terms are answered by the Luibl Rental team during service hours Mon–Fri, 08:00–17:00.

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Who is responsible for the inspection of a rental machine – the rental company or the renter?

As the owner of the machine, Luibl Rental is responsible for carrying out and documenting the inspections and tests. The renter, as the operator, is obliged to use the machine only with valid proof of inspection and to keep the documentation available on site.

How often does an aerial work platform have to be inspected?

Inspection once a year and test every two years by a certified inspection technician (Decree No. 508/2009 Coll., Annex 7), unless the manufacturer specifies shorter intervals. An inspection is also required after every major repair, after an accident with damage to the machine and when the machine is put back into use after a longer period of standstill.

Which documents do I need to be able to present during a site inspection?

The report of the last inspection and test, the inspection records and the manufacturer's operating manual. All documents must be available on the machine and not only in the office.

Is maintenance included in the rental at Luibl Rental?

For short-term rentals, every machine is handed over serviced and with valid proof of inspection. For long-term rental contracts, inspections and tests are included; maintenance by operating hours can be agreed individually.

What happens if a defect occurs during the rental?

On request, Luibl Rental provides a mobile technician on site. If the defect cannot be fixed quickly, a replacement machine is delivered promptly to keep downtime as short as possible.

Does an electric aerial work platform need an electrical equipment check in addition to the inspection?

Yes. The mechanical inspection and test of the lifting equipment under Decree No. 508/2009 Coll. and the electrical equipment check in line with applicable Slovak safety rules and STN EN standards are two separate obligations with separate reports. Both must be available during checks. Proof of the electrical equipment check is available from Luibl Rental on request.