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A-Z Rack Inspections Ltd: SEMA Approved Racking Inspector

Storage Equipment Manufacturers Association (SEMA)

Since SEMA’s inception in 1968, this trade association has grown to represent every part of the storage equipment industry from product design, layout and structure design, and manufacturing quality, to quality-controlled installation and finally maintenance and safety of racking and shelving systems through inspections using SEMA approved racking inspectors (SARI).

During the last fifty years, SEMA has spent its time working with key industry members, other trade organisations and statutory bodies, at a national and international level, such as the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS), the Federation Europeene De La Manutention (FEM), & British Materials Handling Federation (BMHF) to develop and extend SEMA’s role in promoting safety and best practice across the storage equipment industry.

SEMA's Aims and Objectives

• Consider everything relevant to the Storage Equipment Industry.

• Benefit the industry through the distribution of technical advice and information on trading opportunities.

• Establish and publish technical standards for all types of storage equipment.

• Represent the Storage Equipment Industry in discussions with UK Government departments and Local Authorities. SEMA is a Member of the British Materials Handling Federation (BMHF) and actively influences the Federation Europeenne De La Manutention (FEM) Section X, the European Handling Industries Federation which seeks to establish common policies, particularly technical, amongst national storage equipment associations.

• Ensure that standards adopted by public and professional bodies are following the interests of the Industry.

• Encourage cooperation between our members.

• Maintain, above all else, the integrity of the Association.

What is a SARI (SEMA Approved Racking Inspector)?

Under Section 646 of HSG 76 (see complete document link below) ‘Expert’ inspections should be completed by a technically competent person and these inspections should be carried out inspections at intervals of not more than 12 months. A detailed written report should be submitted with observations and proposals for any action necessary in the warehouse facility. IT IS NOT JUST A DAMAGE REPORT, a simple damage report does not meet the requirements of HSG76.

A ‘technically competent person’ covers several individuals, a trained in-house specialist, a specialist from the racking supplier or an independent rack inspector. However, only the SEMA approved racking inspector (SARI) qualification has received formal recognition from the Health and Safety Executive and therefore is considered a ‘competent person’ to inspect your storage racking. The aspect is of paramount importance, as this demonstrates to both HSE and your Insurance company that you have paid conscientious and thorough attention to the selection criteria of your rack inspector.

All SARI’s are trained, examined and continually monitored by SEMA. The application to the course has several elements, an investigation into one’s technical and educational ability, and a pre-course element to ensure that the participants understand the requirements of being a SARI. The SEMA training is extensive and detailed, with both a written and practical examination and both elements need to be passed at a very high level. Once the SARI has passed and received their accreditation, they then have to commit to continual professional development (CPD) to ensure that all SARI remain current with technical information and competent in best industry practice. Finally, the SEMA technical committee randomly select a percentage of SARI to submit work for scrutiny and assessment to ensure that the standard and reputation of SEMA and SARI are maintained at the highest level. Indeed, failure in any aspect of the CPD could mean that the Approval is removed.

There are a number of organisations that offer rack inspections, and it is not wrong to use these if you view them as competent individuals however in the unlikely event of a rack collapse or issue, will you be able to stand up to the scrutiny of an investigation? The claim of being SEMA trained can be simply verified by contacting SEMA via their website and checking the SARI’s certification (see link below) or indeed, for further verification, all SARI carry a photo identification card with their registration number clearly visible. 

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