FEM dock leveller regulations – one year on

One year on, HSM discovers what impact has this had on industry and the implications of non-compliance.

Back in 2014, the FEM undertook wide ranging research and end user feedback to conclude that a key application element of dock levellers built to BS EN 1398: 2009 was being increasingly overlooked. It recommended that this should be taken into account at the time of specification, or risk the overall life of the equipment being affected.

According to FEM, a key driver for these guidelines was the fact that dock levellers were being used more and more in conjunction with pallet trucks or reach trucks, rather than fork lift trucks. This caused a variety of different problems; the main issue being that this approach caused the upper deck of the structure to suffer damage over time because of the significantly higher pressure the trucks impose on the dock levellers.

At the time there was a flurry of awareness activity from FEM to promote the guidelines. While it’s difficult to ascertain exactly how many companies took the necessary steps to adhere to the advice, we do know that before the regulations came into place, there were more than 5000 accidents involving transport in the workplace and now, thanks to the FEM regulations, this figure is thought to have reduced significantly.

However, despite these encouraging figures, it’s likely that many companies still remain non-compliant.

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