Posted By Paul Oliver
All lifting operations should be appropriately planned by a competent person in accordance with the requirements of BS7121.

A trained banksman undergoes a two day course which covers basic H&S legislation along with the selection and use of lifting equipment and correct hand signals, etc.

The training required for a person to be competent requires 4 days training and goes further in depth regarding the selection and correct use of both lifting equipment and ancillary equipment, aswell as the production of lifting plans.

Because of the high risk nature of lifting operations the HSE has placed great emphasis on the use of competent persons to plan and manage lifting operations. I would therefore recommend that you do not use a banksman as an appointed person when he or she is not competent to do so.