24.1 FOREWORD

Barrel lifters are not usually regarded as “general purpose” equipment as they are generally employed in specific circumstances to lift specific loads. Additionally, it is often necessary to manipulate a barrel in some way, e.g. by rotating or tilting it whilst it is suspended, and the barrel lifter for such applications will be equipped with a mechanism to facilitate this manipulation. Such a mechanism will most often be operated by direct manual effort but in some cases will be through a geared mechanism.