24.5.1 Applications

Barrel lifters are suitable for a variety of applications and dependent upon their design may grip the barrel in a variety of ways. They may be used to simply lift a barrel straight up and down or to manipulate the barrel in some way, e.g. to overturn or empty it whilst it is suspended.

A major factor in the safe use of a barrel lifter however is the characteristics of the barrel itself. The barrel must be capable of withstanding the forces exerted upon it by the barrel lifter. Whilst the ability of the load to resist the forces imposed on it during lifting is an important consideration in all lifting operations, when lifting barrels this assumes critical importance. It should be noted that this may not have been taken into account when the barrel was designed and it may therefore be necessary to do calculations or proving trials to ensure that the barrel can be lifted without undue distortion or potential to collapse.

It is strongly recommended that the exact nature of the application is adequately discussed between the user and the supplier.