A conveyor looks harmless until something jams. Then the temptation is to reach in and clear it while the belt is still running, because isolating and locking off takes longer, and that is how people lose arms and lives on quarries and in plant. The guarding and the isolation are what stand between a routine blockage and a fatality. So the real question about a conveyor inspection is not which template you print. It is whether the guards, the pull-cord and the isolation are actually confirmed before the belt runs, and whether nobody reaches in without locking off.
Guide · Mining & Quarrying
Conveyor safety inspection checklist for UK sites.
A practical guide to inspecting conveyors on quarries and plant, guarding, nip points, pull-cords and isolation, from paper log sheets and generic apps to a WhatsApp workflow the operator already knows how to use.
14-day free trial. No card required.
The point
A checklist does not make a conveyor safe.
Guarding, isolation and a competent operator do. Software makes the inspection easy to complete at the plant, hard to skip a guard or a pull-cord, and quick to hand to the office. A good tool means nobody clears a blockage on a running belt because it was quicker than isolating it. Conveyors maim people who reach in.
Where conveyors hurt people
Nip points, guards and isolation.
Nip points
Drums, rollers and returns
The point where the belt meets a drum or roller drags a hand or sleeve in. Fixed guarding at every trapping point is the primary control, checked in place and secure.
Emergency stopPull-cords along the run
A pull-cord (lanyard) along the length lets anyone stop the belt from any point. It must be present, taut, connected and tested to actually cut the drive.
IsolationLock-off before you reach in
Clearing blockages and maintenance need the belt isolated and locked off, not just switched off. Most serious conveyor injuries happen on a belt someone thought was safe.
The friction
The belt that gets cleared running is the one that catches someone.
A blockage on a running belt is a two-minute job until it is a fatality. A paper inspection sheet in the site cabin does not stop that. The check done at the conveyor, that confirms the guards are on and the pull-cord works before the shift, is what keeps hands out of the drum.
Run plant inspections on WhatsApp
No app install. No training.
The operator uses the phone in their pocket. A voice note about a missing guard, a photo of a slack pull-cord. The record generates itself and the office sees a defect the moment it is logged.
The short version
- Conveyors injure people mainly at nip and trapping points, where the belt meets a drum or roller, and during blockage clearing and maintenance on a belt that was not properly isolated.
- Fixed guarding at trapping points, a working emergency-stop pull-cord along the run, and safe isolation and lock-off are the three controls the inspection has to confirm.
- Conveyors are work equipment under PUWER 1998, which requires guarding, maintenance and inspection. Quarries carry additional duties under the Quarries Regulations 1999 and HSE quarry guidance.
- Isolation and lock-off, not just switching off, is the rule before anyone reaches into a conveyor. Most serious injuries happen on a belt someone believed was safe.
- Per-report pricing beats per-seat for a site with many operators and fitters, because adding people is free.
- The checklist does not make the conveyor safe. Guarding, isolation and competence do. The record is what the HSE inspector asks to see.
The point
What a conveyor inspection is for
Conveyors move material continuously, often unattended, and the hazards are concentrated at a few predictable places: the trapping points where the belt wraps a drum or passes a roller, the emergency-stop system that has to work from anywhere along the run, and the isolation that has to be in place before anyone works on the belt. A conveyor inspection exists to confirm those controls are present and working before, and while, the belt runs.
Software does not make a conveyor safe. Guarding, isolation and a competent workforce do. What software does is make the inspection easy to complete at the plant, hard to skip a guard or a pull-cord, and quick to get a defect in front of someone who can stop the belt. A good tool means the check happens at the conveyor, and a missing guard is logged and flagged, not walked past.
Nip points
Guarding at trapping points
The classic conveyor injury is a hand, sleeve or cleaning tool drawn into the in-running nip where the belt meets a drum or roller. The primary control is fixed guarding at every trapping point: head and tail drums, snub and bend pulleys, return rollers, tensioning points and any transfer. Guards must be present, secure, undamaged and not defeated, and access to move a guard should itself require isolation.
The inspection confirms each guard is in place and sound, and photographs any that is missing, loose or bypassed. Quickler captures the guard check point by point with a photo where a guard is defective, so the office sees a stripped guard immediately rather than at the next audit. The tool records the state of the guarding; it does not replace the guard or the design of the safe system of work.
Emergency stop
Pull-cords along the run
Because a conveyor runs along a length where a person could be caught anywhere, the emergency stop is usually a pull-cord, or lanyard, running the full run so it can be operated from any point. For it to protect anyone it must be present along the whole length, correctly tensioned so a pull registers, connected to the switches, and it must actually cut the drive when tested. A slack, snagged or disconnected cord looks fine and does nothing.
The inspection walks the run, checks the cord and its switches, and confirms a test stops the belt. Quickler records the pull-cord test result against the conveyor, with a photo of a slack or broken run, so a dead emergency stop is caught before someone needs it. Follow your site's procedure for testing and resetting the system safely.
Isolation
Lock-off before you reach in
The single most important rule around conveyors is that clearing a blockage or doing maintenance requires the belt to be isolated and locked off, not merely switched off. A belt that is stopped but still energised, or that another person can restart, has killed people who reached in believing it was safe. Safe isolation means locking the energy source off, applying a personal lock, and proving the belt is dead before any work starts.
Quickler can prompt the operator or fitter through the isolation and lock-off steps and record that the belt was proven dead before work began, tying it to the person and the task. It records that the procedure was followed; it does not perform the isolation or replace a proper lock-off system and permit to work. See the wider approach in the lockout tagout audit guide.
The rules
PUWER, quarries and HSE guidance
Conveyors are work equipment, so they sit under the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER), which require dangerous parts to be guarded, and equipment to be maintained and inspected. On quarries there are additional duties under the Quarries Regulations 1999, and the HSE publishes specific guidance on conveyor safety in the quarrying industry covering guarding, edge protection, crossing points and isolation. Machinery supplied new also carries requirements under the supply regulations.
These duties overlap and change, and the right control on your site depends on the layout, the material and the access. Treat this as general information and confirm the current PUWER requirements, the Quarries Regulations and the HSE quarry conveyor guidance that apply to your operation.
Pricing
Per report, not per seat
Most inspection apps charge per seat. A quarry or plant operation has operators, fitters, shift managers and contractors, and per-seat pricing means paying a licence for each of them just to log a conveyor check.
Quickler charges per report, with unlimited users on every bundle. Bundles run from Quickler 50 at 50 pounds a month for 50 reports, up to Quickler 500 at 500 pounds a month for 500 reports. Add every operator and fitter; you pay for the checks filed, not the people who could file them. Pricing is approximate and changes, so confirm the current pricing page before you commit.
Questions, answered
What are the main hazards on a conveyor?
The main hazards are trapping and nip points where the belt meets a drum or roller, entanglement, and being caught during blockage clearing or maintenance on a belt that was not properly isolated. The controls are fixed guarding at trapping points, a working emergency-stop pull-cord along the run, and safe isolation and lock-off before anyone reaches in.
What law covers conveyor safety in the UK?
Conveyors are work equipment under the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER), which require guarding, maintenance and inspection. Quarries carry additional duties under the Quarries Regulations 1999, and the HSE publishes specific quarry conveyor guidance. New machinery also carries supply-side requirements. Confirm the current requirements that apply to your operation.
Why is isolation so important on a conveyor?
Because most serious conveyor injuries happen on a belt someone believed was safe. Clearing a blockage or doing maintenance requires the belt to be isolated and locked off, not just switched off, so it cannot be restarted while a person is reaching in. Safe isolation means locking off the energy source, applying a personal lock, and proving the belt is dead before work starts.
Can I run conveyor inspections over WhatsApp?
Yes. Quickler's inspection runs over the WhatsApp Business API. The operator receives each item in their existing WhatsApp chat, replies with text, a voice note or a photo of a missing guard, and the record generates automatically. A defect flags to the office immediately, and it can prompt the isolation steps before maintenance. Quickler manages the WhatsApp Business API account on the firm's behalf.