Installations subject to monitoring in Germany: inspection duties and approved bodies

What are installations subject to monitoring?

Installations subject to monitoring are installations whose operation can pose considerable risks to employees and other persons and which are therefore designated as such by statutory ordinance (Section 2 No. 1 of the Act on Installations Subject to Monitoring, ÜAnlG). The Ordinance on Industrial Safety and Health (BetrSichV) lists them in Section 18 and Annex 2. They must be inspected before commissioning and at regular intervals – generally by an approved inspection body (ZÜS).

• Lift installations (Annex 2 Part 2): lifts under the Lifts Directive 2014/33/EU, construction site hoists, building maintenance units and paternoster lifts – but not escalators or storage and retrieval machines
• Pressure installations (Part 4): steam boiler installations, pressure vessel installations such as compressed air receivers, gas filling installations and piping for certain flammable, pyrophoric, acutely toxic or corrosive substances
• Installations in explosion hazard areas (Part 3): all work equipment relevant to explosion protection, including connecting elements and building parts, for example in paint shops or solvent stores

The duties do not only apply to employers: anyone who uses an installation subject to monitoring for commercial or business purposes is treated as an employer (Section 2 (3) BetrSichV).

ÜAnlG and BetrSichV: who regulates what

Since 16 July 2021, the Act on Installations Subject to Monitoring (ÜAnlG) has set out the basic duties of operators; previously they were part of the Product Safety Act. Under it, the operator must have the installation inspected before first commissioning, after modifications requiring inspection, after exceptional events and at regular intervals (Section 7 (1) ÜAnlG). An installation with defects that endanger employees or other persons must not be operated (Section 8 ÜAnlG).

Which installations are covered, how they are inspected and which intervals apply is laid down in the BetrSichV: Section 15 covers the inspection before commissioning, Section 16 the recurring inspection, Section 17 the records and Section 18 the permit requirement; Annex 2 contains the details for each type of installation. The employer specifies the inspection intervals in the risk assessment (Section 3 (6) BetrSichV).

Which inspections are required

1. 1

   Before first commissioning

   The inspection checks whether technical documents such as the EC declaration of conformity are available and plausible and whether the installation, including its installation conditions, has been set up safely. The inspector also determines whether the specified inspection intervals are correct (Section 15 (1) and (2) BetrSichV).

2. 2

   After modifications requiring inspection

   Any measure that affects safety can be a modification requiring inspection – including repairs (Section 2 (9) BetrSichV). The installation is inspected again before it is put back into service.

3. 3

   At regular intervals

   At the intervals specified by the employer, without exceeding the maximum intervals in Annex 2 (Section 16 BetrSichV).

4. 4

   Extraordinary inspections

   After exceptional events (Section 7 (1) ÜAnlG) and when the authority orders an inspection, for example after damage has occurred (Section 19 (5) BetrSichV).

Approved body or qualified person: who may inspect

As a rule, an approved inspection body such as TÜV or DEKRA carries out the inspection (Section 15 (3) BetrSichV). A person qualified to carry out inspections (zur Prüfung befähigte Person) may inspect where Annex 2 provides for it, after modifications that affect neither the design nor the mode of operation of the installation, and for mobile installations set up at a new location after first commissioning – except steam boiler installations requiring a permit.

• Lift installations: all inspections by the approved body
• Installations in explosion hazard areas: approved body or a qualified person with the special qualification under Annex 2 Part 3 No. 3.3; for gas filling installations, storage facilities, filling points, filling stations and airfield refuelling installations under Section 18 (1) Nos. 3 to 7 only the approved body
• Pressure installations: depending on pressure, volume and fluid according to Tables 2 to 11 in Annex 2 Part 4 – smaller vessels are inspected by a qualified person, larger ones by the approved body

Maximum intervals under Annex 2 BetrSichV

The employer specifies the actual inspection intervals, and the inspector checks at every inspection whether they are correct. These maximum intervals must not be exceeded (Section 3 (6) BetrSichV):

• Lift installation: main inspection

  Maximum interval2 years

  InspectorApproved body (ZÜS)

• Lift installation: intermediate inspection

  Maximum intervalhalfway between two main inspections

  InspectorApproved body (ZÜS)

• Installation in explosion hazard areas: inspection for explosion safety

  Maximum interval6 years

  InspectorApproved body or qualified person under No. 3.3

• Ex equipment, protective systems, safety, control and regulating devices

  Maximum interval3 years

  InspectorQualified person under No. 3.1

• Ventilation systems, gas warning and inerting equipment in Ex areas

  Maximum intervalevery year

  InspectorQualified person under No. 3.1

• Steam boilers (subject to ZÜS inspection)

  Maximum intervalexternal inspection 1 year, internal 3 years, strength 9 years

  InspectorApproved body (ZÜS)

• Pressure vessels (subject to ZÜS inspection)

  Maximum intervalexternal inspection 2 years (not required for unheated vessels), internal 5 years, strength 10 years

  InspectorApproved body (ZÜS)

• Pressure installation parts that qualified persons may inspect

  Maximum interval10 years, strength test up to 15 years with proof

  InspectorQualified person

Due dates are stated as month and year; a recurring inspection counts as on time if it takes place no later than two months after the due date (Section 14 (5), Section 16 (3) BetrSichV). For pressure installations, the inspection interval must be determined no later than six months after commissioning (Part 4 No. 5.4). The inspections of Ex equipment and of ventilation, gas warning and inerting equipment can be dropped if an equivalent maintenance concept is specified in the risk assessment (Part 3 No. 5.4).

Permit requirement under Section 18 BetrSichV

For some installations inspection is not enough: their construction, operation and any changes to design or mode of operation that affect safety require a permit from the competent authority. This applies to:

• steam boiler installations that fall into category IV under the Pressure Equipment Directive
• filling installations in which more than 10 kg of compressed gas per hour is filled into transportable pressure equipment for supply to others
• gas filling installations for refuelling vehicles with flammable gases
• storage facilities for more than 10,000 litres of flammable liquids
• filling points with more than 1,000 litres per hour, filling stations and airfield refuelling installations

For storage facilities, filling points and filling stations, flammable liquids with a flash point below 23 °C count. The application must include a test report from an approved body; the authority decides within three months, later in justified cases. The permit expires, among other things, if the installation has not been operated for three years (Section 18 (3), (5) and (6) BetrSichV).

Inspection certificate, record keeping and defects

If an approved body carries out the inspection, the employer must request an inspection certificate from it. Records and certificates must at least provide information on (Section 17 (1) BetrSichV):

• identification of the installation, date of inspection, type of inspection and basis of inspection
• scope of inspection and the suitability and functionality of the technical measures and suitability of the organisational measures
• result of the inspection and the intervals for the next recurring inspections
• name and signature of the inspector and, for inspections by an approved body, also the name of the body

The documents are kept at the place of operation for the entire period of use, electronic storage included. In every lift car, a marking such as an inspection sticker shows the month and year of the next inspection and the inspecting body (Section 17 (2)). Defects found must be remedied within a reasonable period, at the latest within one year (Section 7 (3) ÜAnlG). If the approved body finds a dangerous defect, the installation may only be put back into service after a follow-up inspection (Section 10 ÜAnlG).

Checklist: installations subject to monitoring

• All lifts, pressure installations and installations in explosion hazard areas recorded
• Permit requirement under Section 18 BetrSichV checked
• Inspection intervals specified in the risk assessment, maximum intervals observed
• Clarified for each inspection whether the approved body or a qualified person inspects
• Inspections before commissioning and after modifications requiring inspection planned
• Inspection certificates filed at the place of operation for the entire period of use
• Inspection sticker up to date in every lift car
• Defects tracked with deadlines, installations with dangerous defects taken out of service
• Accidents and cases of damage reported to the authority without delay

Free templates for this guide

As PDF and Excel, free – to use in your own company.

• Testing duties

  Work equipment inspection register template (Excel) with inspection intervals

  ExcelFree download
• Hazardous substances

  Explosion protection document template (PDF & Excel) with zone register

  PDF + ExcelFree download

Frequently asked questions