You can’t eliminate risk if you don’t understand where it’s coming from.
That’s why risk assessments in equipment moves are much more than just check-box exercises. They’re about asking the right questions, gathering the right information, and making smart calls at every step.
At IES Inc., we take a tiered approach to risk assessments to ensure nothing is overlooked.
Our General Manager, Tim Patten, explains that approach, and how it helps manufacturers and OEMs move with confidence.
Step 1: Gather as much information as possible
The more you know before a move begins, the better prepared you’ll be to identify hazards and avoid surprises down the line.
“Information gathering has to be first and foremost,” Tim explains. “Gather as much as you can, and check as many boxes as you can upfront.”
According to Tim, that involves:
- Walking the site to check access points, floor loads, potential obstacles, and the full route (not just the first door). Think about raised access floors in cleanrooms, point loads near structural columns, or ceiling heights that may be lower than expected around HVAC units.
- Researching the equipment itself. For example, is it top-heavy? Does it have an off-set center of gravity? Does it have the capacity to draw your fingers in during the commissioning process?
- Double-checking documentation. Critical details don’t always make it downstream, so you actively need to confirm specs, drawings, and site conditions firsthand.
“The key element is to remember that whatever you’re doing, your risk assessment has to be appropriate to the nature of the work,” Tim adds.
“And that needs to encompass the people, equipment and environment. You can have two identical pieces of equipment going into two different buildings, and you’ll have two different risk assessments.”
Step 2: Assess every step of the move
Once you have the facts, the next step is to look at the move piece by piece to identify specific risks.
“Most people tend to focus on specifics but forget the wider picture,” Tim explains. “So, they might focus so much on how they’re going to move equipment that they forget about risks relating to access or building constraints.”
For example, Tim says, planning to move equipment down a corridor without considering whether you need to block that corridor to stop workers from coming out of offices. Or even planning to move equipment through a live production area without considering how you’re going to mitigate disruption.
That’s why, at every stage, you need to ask questions about the practical realities of the move and how that will unfold in real time. For example:
- What lifting equipment will we use, and is it appropriate for the weight and center of gravity?
- Do we need to close off corridors or re-route people to keep bystanders out of harm’s way?
- What’s the specific risk here, and do we have the right controls in place?
- Do these control measures introduce additional health and safety concerns?
“Having a proper assessment and making sure you’ve got every risk identified and covered is crucial,” Tim concludes.
Step 3. Apply the hierarchy of controls
Identifying risks is only half the job. You also need a structured way to handle them.
At IES Inc., we apply the industry-standard hierarchy of control:
- Eliminate risks where possible
- Reduce them when elimination isn’t realistic
- Isolate hazards to keep them contained
- Control what remains with safeguards, processes, and PPE
Tim adds, “You might put a control in place to reduce risk in one area, but you also need to think about whether that control has created new risks elsewhere. That’s something lots of teams overlook.”
Finally, applying the hierarchy of controls isn’t just a paper exercise. Every risk assessment is formalized, documented, and shared with all stakeholders (including clients, crews, and subcontractors) to ensure accountability and alignment.
Step 4: Stay flexible when theory doesn’t match reality
Even the best plan on paper won’t always match what you find on-site. A corridor could be narrower than expected. A piece of equipment might behave differently than anticipated.
That’s why risk assessments aren’t static. They, by default, have to evolve.
That makes them tools for ongoing reassessment, rather than one-and-done activities.
“Don’t be afraid of making changes. Your risk assessment may need several iterations, and you might have to reassess parts of it during the move if reality doesn’t match the plan on paper,” Tim says. “When that happens, step back, review the section, and adjust as needed.”
A good plan is one that supports continuous reassessment so you can adapt and keep moving safely and efficiently.
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From single pieces of equipment to entire site relocations, we’re backed by over 30 years of moving capital equipment within high-technology industries.
Find out more about our equipment moves service via our webpage here.