A tower crane does not start work on a site before a certified inspector for tower cranes has inspected it. This requirement appears in the Safety at Work (Tower Cranes) Regulations, 1966, and recurs throughout the life of the project: after erection, after a change or major repair, and in a periodic inspection. In this guide we have gathered what the regulations actually require, what the inspector checks, what to do with the inspection report and how to arrive at inspection day prepared. The guide was reviewed by RMA’s engineering and service team and is based on the text of the regulations, the guidelines of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and parallel procedures in Europe.
Chapter Nine of the regulations deals entirely with inspections of a tower crane by a certified inspector. Regulation 86 sets three occasions on which a thorough inspection must be carried out, and adds requirements for a crane that travels on rails:
| When | What the regulation says | Practical note |
|---|---|---|
| After erection | Regulation 86(a)(1): immediately after the crane is erected and before it is operated | Also applies to re-erection on another site. Until the inspection, operation is permitted only to test function, with no lifts for construction purposes (regulation 86(c)) |
| After a change or major repair | Regulation 86(a)(2): immediately after any change to the crane’s structure or a major repair to it, and before it is operated | In practice it is customary to order an inspection after a raising or tying as well, because they change the crane’s configuration. It is worth confirming with the safety officer what counts as a structural change on your site |
| Periodic inspection | Regulation 86(a)(3): at least once every six months after the date of the last inspection, for as long as the crane stands erected | The period is counted from the last inspection and not from the start of the project |
| A crane on rails | Regulation 86(b): the rail track is also inspected, including after adding a section of track or changing its route | More common in factories than on residential sites |
In construction work, the duty to carry out the inspections chapter rests with the party carrying out the construction (regulation 91). The certified inspector’s inspection does not replace the routine checks: every day, at the start of operation, the crane operator checks the brakes, the overload limiters using test weights, the alarm devices and the limit switches (regulation 59), and once a week visually checks all the ropes (regulation 60). A defect that is discovered is recorded in part C of the crane logbook and reported to the site manager (regulation 61), and a crane found to have a defect will not be operated until it is repaired (regulation 62).
As the regulations define it, a certified inspector is a person the Chief Labor Inspector has authorised, whose authorisation has been expressly extended to the inspection of tower cranes. The Safety Administration’s authorisation procedure states that a candidate for authorisation for tower cranes must first be a certified inspector for lifting machinery, with two years of experience and a large number of inspections, and must take part in practical inspections of tower cranes alongside veteran inspectors. The candidate also declares that there is no conflict of interest. According to the Safety Administration’s activity report for 2025, a course for tower crane inspectors was completed that increased their number to more than 40. On inspection day, two other professionals work alongside the certified inspector. An NDT inspector, who is a Level II non-destructive testing inspector (with at least five years of experience) or Level III under SI 1031, and who has completed a training course for tower cranes approved by the Chief Labor Inspector. And an inspecting electrician with a suitable licence, who approves the crane’s electrical system after erection. It is recommended to ask the inspector for their authorisation number and to confirm that it appears in the inspection report.
Regulation 87 defines the scope of the inspection, and says it is carried out according to written guidelines of the Chief Labor Inspector, and in their absence according to professional rules. Over the years the Safety Administration’s guidelines have added documents the inspector must see before approving a crane after erection. The table summarises the main subjects:
| Subject | What is checked | Source of the requirement |
|---|---|---|
| Stability and load test | The stability of the crane relative to the safe working load, and a test under a test load. A test load is defined as a load 25% above the working load, or another load set by the manufacturer | Regulations 1 and 87(a)(1) |
| Limit switches and limiters | Limit switches for movements and travel, overload limit switches, the alarm mechanism and the automatic adjuster | Regulation 87(a)(3) and (4) |
| Brakes | Inspection and testing of the brakes of all types, including the automatic hoist brake | Regulations 23 and 87(a)(6) |
| Ropes | The ropes used in the crane’s mechanism. Lifting accessories and slings are checked according to their instructions, and a separate inspection report is kept on site | Regulations 25, 26 and 87(a)(7) |
| Raising and lowering mechanism | Inspection and testing, if the crane has one | Regulation 87(a)(5) |
| Crane structure | Mast, jib and connections. On a crane more than 10 years old the inspector relies on the findings of the NDT report | Safety Administration NDT guidelines, 2014 |
| Foundations and ties | A stable base, anchoring and counterweights in place. Before approval after erection, an opinion from a soil or structural engineer is required, as relevant | Regulations 35 to 37, letter of the Chief Labor Inspector from 2016 |
| Electrical | Approval by an inspecting electrician: the supply arrangement, a suitable main switch and residual-current devices for lighting and the operator’s cab | Letter of the Chief Labor Inspector from 2011 |
| Collision prevention | The existence and proper working of integrated slewing limit switches or an anti-collision system, as required on the site | Letter of the Chief Labor Inspector from 2016 |
| Signage | The safe-load sign and the counterweight chart. An advertising sign fitted contrary to the manufacturer’s instructions must be removed before operation | Regulations 32 and 33, letter of 2011 |
The Safety Administration’s guidelines for carrying out non-destructive testing on tower cranes, dated 28 October 2014, apply to crane inspections from the beginning of 2015. According to the guidelines, a crane more than 10 years old is NDT-tested before every erection, and also in a periodic test in the upright position as long as it works on the same site. The frequency of the periodic test shortens as the crane gets older. A crane that has not been tested as required will not be erected, and a certified inspector will not inspect a crane without an up-to-date NDT report, whose number and date they state in the inspection report. The test focuses on welds in critical areas, where alternating stresses act, and on a sample of non-critical points. Fatigue cracks are located by the magnetic particle method, and loss of wall thickness in tubes is measured by the ultrasonic method. At the test locations the paint is removed, and repainted after repair. The NDT report is sent within a week to the crane owner, the certified inspector and the Safety Administration in the area. Weld repairs are carried out by a qualified welder and tested again by the NDT inspector, and cracks not repaired within a month require a new test. As for the slewing ring, a clarification letter of the Chief Labor Inspector from 2011 states that on erection it must be ensured that the last NDT test is valid for at least six more months, and that the next ring-bolt replacement date is more than six months away. The certified inspector records in the inspection report the date of the NDT and its validity, and the dates of bolt replacement. At Potain, the manufacturer’s instructions include checking the tightening torque of the ring bolts once a year and preventive replacement by years or working hours, as well as replacement every time the ring itself is replaced. The meaning for the contractor is simple: the crane’s age, the validity of the NDT and the bolt date should be matched to the length of the project already when choosing the crane.
Regulation 88 says the inspector draws up a report on the results of the inspection, signs it and attaches it to the crane logbook within seven days of the inspection date. The report is prepared in two copies on the form in the Second Schedule, and one copy is sent by the inspector to the regional labor inspector within the same period. This is how it is handled on site:
When the inspector discovers an immediate danger, they may order in writing its removal or reduction, hand the order to the person who ordered the inspection and report immediately to the regional labor inspector (regulation 89). The crane must not be operated contrary to the order, and it remains in force until cancelled in writing by the inspector or the labor inspector (regulation 90). Even after such an order the inspector must issue a report. The Safety Administration requires marking with a special stamp when a crane is prohibited from use, and has determined that a report issued contrary to the guidelines will lead to a safety order prohibiting the use of the crane, whose cancellation is conditional on a re-inspection and a new report. According to the 2022 regulatory impact assessment document for the regulations, in the decade before it the Administration issued about 1,000 safety orders for violations of the tower crane regulations, most of them for technical defects found in a certified inspector’s inspection. In practice, the short way back to work is to divide the findings in two: a defect that prevents operation is handled immediately, and a defect with a repair date goes into the service team’s work plan. Every repair is recorded in the crane logbook, and after a major repair a re-inspection is required before operation.
In May 2022 a comprehensive draft amendment to the regulations was published for public comment, alongside a regulatory impact assessment document. Among the proposals relating to inspection: widening the scope of the inspection, a duty on the inspector to give, at the end of the inspection, a decision on continued operation or a ban on use, an online report to be sent within two working days, and a ban on inspecting a crane without documentation of the repair of the defects from the previous report. In March 2025 another draft was published. The Safety Administration’s 2025 report notes that a narrow draft amendment on tower crane erectors and maintainers was passed to the Ministry of Justice. As of October 2026, the drafts have not come into force, and we have not found a final text published in the official gazette. Until then, the 1966 regulations and the Safety Administration’s guidelines apply. Before a decision that depends on the new text, it is worth checking the current position with the project’s safety officer or the Safety Administration. A further summary of the requirements is on the Tower cranes: types, regulations and rental page.
The comparison shows that the principle is similar: an inspection after on-site erection, a periodic inspection and an in-depth inspection for an older crane. The main difference is in the frequency.
| Country | Before first use | Periodic inspection | Older crane |
|---|---|---|---|
| Israel | Inspection by a certified inspector before operation | At least every six months | NDT for a crane more than 10 years old |
| Italy (D.Lgs. 81/2008) | Notification to INAIL of putting the equipment into service, followed by a request for the first periodic inspection | Annual verifica periodica in construction. The first is INAIL’s responsibility, later ones also by authorised bodies | Indagine supplementare for a mobile or transferable crane in service for over 20 years, by an expert engineer, to determine the remaining life |
| France (VGP) | Vérification de remise en service after dismantling and re-erection, including a suitability check and an erection check | Annual VGP for a crane erected from sections, six-monthly for a self-erecting crane | Examen approfondi according to the manufacturer’s instructions, and in the absence of such maintenance, once every five years |
| United Kingdom (LOLER) | Thorough examination after erection and before use on every site | 12 months, or according to an examination scheme | According to the examination scheme set by the competent person |
The EN 14439 standard deals with the safety requirements for the design and manufacture of tower cranes, not with inspection dates. The 2025 edition was approved by CEN in May 2025 and replaced EN 14439:2006+A2:2009. It applies to cranes manufactured after its publication, so an older crane does not become non-compliant because of the new edition. By contrast, an inspection by a certified inspector in Israel is carried out under the guidelines of the Chief Labor Inspector and professional rules (regulation 87(b)), including the manufacturer’s instructions for the specific model.
RMA’s engineering and service team, 60 staff, technicians and engineers, accompanies, as of 2026, about 500 cranes under ongoing service across the country. Before a periodic inspection the team checks the brakes, limit switches, ropes and electrical panel, updates the crane logbook and makes sure the validity of the NDT and the ring-bolt replacement date suit the crane’s age and the length of the project. When the report includes defects, the team comes to deal with them and uses its stock of Potain parts to shorten downtime, and prepares the documentation for the re-inspection. Details are on the service and maintenance of tower cranes page. After a raising or an additional tie, the inspection fits into the work of erection, raising and tying of tower cranes. For a new project you can start with a needs assessment and initial planning at no cost (an initial review of the site plan and a basic recommendation on model and position; a full placement plan is priced separately), or by phone on 08-9202882.
Under regulation 86 of the tower crane regulations, at least once every six months from the date of the last inspection, for as long as the crane stands erected. In addition, an inspection is required immediately after erection and before operation, and immediately after a change to the structure or a major repair.
After erection is complete, the regulations permit operation only to test function, with no lifts to advance the construction. Operation for work begins after the certified inspector has inspected the crane and has not prohibited its use. The signed report must be attached to the crane logbook within seven days.
In construction work, the duty to carry out the inspections chapter of the regulations rests with the party carrying out the construction. In practice the coordination is usually between the contractor, the site manager and the crane’s service company, and it is worth defining the split of responsibility already in the agreement.
The certified inspector inspects the whole crane, including a test-load trial, limit switches, brakes and ropes, and signs the report. Non-destructive testing (NDT) is carried out by an approved NDT inspector, focuses on locating cracks and loss of wall thickness in the structure, and is required for cranes more than 10 years old. The certified inspector relies on the NDT report as part of their decision.
The inspector may order in writing the removal or reduction of the danger, and reports it to the regional labor inspector. The crane must not be operated contrary to the order, and it remains in force until cancelled in writing by the inspector or by the labor inspector.
As of October 2026, no. A comprehensive draft was published for public comment in 2022 and another draft in 2025, and according to the Safety Administration’s 2025 report, a narrow draft amendment was passed to the Ministry of Justice. Until an amendment comes into force, the 1966 regulations and the Safety Administration’s guidelines apply. It is worth confirming the current position with the safety officer or with the Ministry.
The information in this article is general and does not replace engineering, safety or legal advice for a specific site.
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