Form 5 and Form 11 Certificates Explained
Lifting gear used in India has to be tested and thoroughly examined by a competent person, and the result has to be written down in a form an inspector will accept. Sealinkers issues Form 5 and Form 11 certificates for that purpose, from our in-house test house in Darukhana, Mumbai. This guide explains what each of our certificates records, how they relate to the statutory examination cycle, why the form number your site needs may differ, and what to send us so the paperwork comes back right first time. For the legal background — who recognises the competent person under each regime — see our companion guide, DGFASLI & Factories Act Compliance Explained.
On a Sealinkers certificate set, Form 5 records the initial test and examination of an item — when it first enters service or returns after repair — and Form 11 records each periodic thorough examination after that. The interval comes from the law that applies to your site: under the Factories Act, 1948 at least every twelve months for lifting machines, chains, ropes and lifting tackle (s.29), and at least every six months for hoists and lifts (s.28). Form numbers differ between states and regimes, so tell us which form your inspector or surveyor asks for.
What Our Form 5 Records
Form 5 is the birth certificate of a piece of lifting gear in your register. It is issued when an item first goes into service, or when it comes back after a repair or alteration that could affect its strength. It records:
- Identification: the item's description, its unique identification or serial number, the maker and, where marked, the grade and the product standard it was built to.
- Rating: the safe working load (SWL or WLL) the item is certified for — the figure that must also appear on the item's own marking or tag.
- The test: the proof load actually applied, the date, and the standard or specification the proof load was taken from.
- The examination: the result of the thorough examination after the test, including any non-destructive testing carried out.
- The examiner: the name and signature of the competent person, and the test house's details.
What Our Form 11 Records
Form 11 is the periodic report. Each time an item reaches its examination due date it is thoroughly examined again by a competent person, and Form 11 records the outcome: the same identification and rating as the item's Form 5, the date of examination, the condition found, any defects and the action required, whether the item is fit to remain in service, and the date the next examination falls due. Where a proof-load retest is carried out at the same visit, the load applied is recorded too.
A compliant item's file therefore starts with one Form 5 and accumulates a Form 11 for every examination since. Read together they tell an inspector the item's whole history: what it is, what it was proved to, and that nobody let it slip past a due date.
How the Certificates Fit the Statutory Cycle
The certificates are evidence; the duty to examine comes from the regime your site falls under. In a factory, the Factories Act, 1948 requires every lifting machine and every chain, rope and lifting tackle to be thoroughly examined by a competent person at least once in every period of twelve months, or at such intervals as the Chief Inspector may specify in writing (s.29(1)(a)(iii)); hoists and lifts — cars running in a hoistway — at least once every six months (s.28(1)(a)(iv)). The competent person for a factory is recognised by the state Chief Inspector of Factories (s.2(ca)). At ports the Dock Workers (Safety, Health and Welfare) Regulations, 1990 apply instead, with DGFASLI recognising the competent person as Chief Inspector of Dock Safety (reg. 2(d)). Construction sites run under the BOCW Central Rules, 1998, where the Central Government approves the competent person (r.2(j)).
| Question | Form 5 (as Sealinkers issues it) | Form 11 (as Sealinkers issues it) |
|---|---|---|
| When it is issued | First entry into service, or return after repair or alteration | At every periodic thorough examination |
| What triggers it | A new or repaired item | The due date in your register |
| Proof load test | Yes — the load and its basis are stated | Where a retest is carried out, the load is stated |
| How many per item | One per entry into service | One per examination, accumulating |
| Where it lives | In the register, against the item | In the register, after the item's Form 5 |
Why Your Inspector May Ask for a Different Number
Form numbers are not national. Each state's Factories Rules prescribe their own registers and number their forms their own way, and the dock and construction regimes have separate series of their own. The same document — a record of thorough examination of a chain sling, say — can carry a different form number in two states, or at a factory and a port in the same city. That is why the right question is never "do you issue Form 11?" in the abstract but "which form does my inspector or surveyor ask for, under which rules?" Tell us the regime and the form, and we certify to it. The underlying content — identification, rating, test, examination, examiner — is the same whatever the number on top.
Importance for Compliance and Insurance
These certificates are not just regulatory formalities. Many insurance policies covering lifting operations require valid, in-date certification as a condition of cover, and an inspector can take an item with an expired certificate out of use. Failure to keep the file complete can mean enforcement action, an insurance dispute after an incident, and — most importantly — a real safety gap, since the certificate is the only formal evidence the gear was actually checked.
Keeping the Register
Most certification trouble is register trouble. Practical rules that keep a file inspection-ready:
- Give every item a unique identification and make sure it is physically marked on the item, not just written on the certificate.
- File the Form 5 against that identification the day the item enters service.
- Track next-due dates centrally — a spreadsheet or register column — not by leafing through certificates.
- Book the examination before the due date, not on it; an item past its date is out of statutory service.
- Withdraw and quarantine anything that fails, is damaged, or has lost its marking, and record why.
- Keep the certificate for each examination with the register, where an inspector can see it.
Sealinkers' Role as a Test House
Sealinkers has run an in-house test house in Darukhana, Mumbai since 1977. We provide DGFASLI testing, proof-load testing on our 1,200 T proof-load test bed, carry out the thorough examination and NDT, and issue Form 5 and Form 11 certificates in our own name — so there is no wait on an outside agency. We test slings, shackles, hooks, chain, wire rope assemblies, hoists and other lifting gear, whether or not we originally supplied them, and where marine certification is needed we test to IRS, ABS, LRS or BV witnessing. See our proof-load testing and inspection and certification pages, and our guide to reading a test certificate to check what comes back.
What to Send Us
- A list of the items with their identification numbers, descriptions and rated loads.
- The regime the gear works under — factory, port or construction site — and the state.
- The form your inspector or surveyor has asked for, if it is not Form 5 or Form 11.
- Previous certificates, if any, so the history carries over.
- Any class-society witnessing your client requires.
Using lifting gear past its examination due date, or on a certificate from an examiner the regime does not recognise, leaves the item statutorily out of service and the factory occupier and manager exposed. If a certificate has lapsed, quarantine the item and have it re-examined before it lifts anything again — never backdate or self-certify.
Frequently asked questions
Are Form 5 and Form 11 the same in every state?
No. Form numbers are set by the rules that apply to the site — each state's Factories Rules, or the dock or construction regime — and they differ. Sealinkers issues Form 5 and Form 11 as standard; if your inspector asks for a different form, tell us which and we certify to it.
How often do I need a new Form 11?
At every periodic thorough examination. In a factory that is at least once every twelve months for lifting machines, chains, ropes and lifting tackle under section 29 of the Factories Act, 1948, or sooner if the Chief Inspector specifies a shorter interval in writing; hoists and lifts are examined at least every six months under section 28.
Do I need a new Form 5 after a repair?
Yes. Any repair or alteration that could affect the item's strength sends it back through test and examination before it re-enters service, and a fresh initial certificate is issued.
Can you certify gear you did not supply?
Yes, provided the item is marked, identifiable and built to a standard or maker's specification we can test against. Unmarked items with no traceable rating cannot honestly be certified against anything.
For testing, certification or advice on lifting gear compliance, contact Sealinkers for a quote.
Related Guides
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Rigging & Lifting Engineering Team
Sealinkers has supplied and certified rigging, lifting and mooring equipment from Darukhana, Mumbai since 1977. These guides are written and checked by the engineers who specify this gear and proof-load it on our own test bed.
- in-house test house — proof-load bed from 1 to 1,200 tonnes
- Proof-load testing and certification in-house since 1977, Darukhana, Mumbai
- Class-society interfaces: IRS, ABS, LRS and BV
