21.8.1 Marking
In addition to the marking required by the applicable legislation and the standard being worked to, the following shall be permanently and legibly marked on each lifting beam:
Identification mark. This should be repeated on all detachable components. (If the manufacturer has not provided a unique serial number then it is the responsibility of the user to add the identification mark to identify the equipment with the inspection and examination reports)
Working load limit and SWL, if different.
The name and address of the manufacturer
Year of construction
Total mass of the assembly
Some lifting beams have multiple lifting points and the maximum working load may depend upon the lifting points in use. The marking must clearly show the permitted options and the maximum working load for each.
Some lifting beams are of modular design and the maximum working load may depend upon the configuration. If it is impractical to show the maximum working load for all configurations, a code may be used to identify the capacity of each component part and that code used in the manufacturer’s instructions to determine the maximum working load for the particular configuration.
Where the orientation of the beam is not obvious, this should also be indicated. A ‘this way up’ arrow may suffice.
Occasionally lifting beams are fitted with fork lift pockets. These pockets are either intended to allow a fork lift truck to lift the load with the lifting beam or to allow the beam to be moved from location to location only. Whatever the intention, it is important that they are marked appropriately for their intended use, i.e. for lifting the unladen lifting beam only.