Most EWP purchases go wrong before anyone looks at a machine: the requirement was never pinned down, the whole-of-life costs were never counted, or the compliance handover was left to sort itself out. This checklist walks the acquisition from first definition to day-one operation. It deliberately takes no position on how the machine is funded — outright purchase, finance or long-term hire all sit downstream of the same disciplined homework, and how to fund an asset is a conversation for your own accountant or adviser.
Step 1 — Define the requirement in writing
This document becomes the yardstick for every option you evaluate. A machine that fails the requirement is out, however attractive the deal.
Before contacting a single seller, document:
- The tasks the machine must perform, and the working height, outreach and platform capacity they genuinely require.
- The operating environment — indoor or outdoor, slab or rough terrain, and any need for an insulated machine for work near energised apparatus.
- Site constraints: access widths, door and ceiling heights, floor loadings, and transport between sites.
- Expected utilisation — hours per week, seasonality, and whether the work justifies ownership at all or points to hire.
- Who will operate the machine and whether they hold the correct credential for the class of machine being considered.
Step 2 — Count the whole cost of ownership
The purchase price is one line in a longer ledger. A credible procurement decision counts the machine's costs across its time in your fleet, because that is what the business will actually pay.
Build the whole-of-life picture from:
- Routine and periodic inspection and maintenance to AS 2550.10 across the ownership period.
- The 10-year major inspection if it falls due during your ownership — including downtime and potential rectification, not just the inspection itself.
- Parts availability and support for the model, which drives both cost and downtime when something fails.
- Transport, storage and, for electric machines, charging infrastructure.
- Operator credentials and any training your people need, arranged through an RTO or the industry association.
- Likely resale position at the end of your ownership window, including where the machine will sit in its inspection cycle when you sell.
Step 3 — Evaluate machines on evidence
Whether the candidate is new or used, the evaluation discipline is the same: verify claims rather than accept them. For a new machine that means confirming specification, compliance documentation and support arrangements in writing. For a used machine it means the full records review — logbook, service history, major inspection certification where applicable — and a physical and functional assessment.
For any used machine where records are incomplete or condition is uncertain, commission an independent pre-purchase inspection by a competent person before committing. The findings either justify the price or become your negotiating position.
Step 4 — Get the compliance handover right
Do not take delivery until you can tick:
- The logbook and all inspection records transfer with the machine.
- The date of manufacture is documented and the next periodic and major inspection dates are diarised in your maintenance system.
- Operator and service manuals for the exact model are supplied.
- Safety devices, decals and capacity plates are present, legible and correct for the machine's configuration.
- Any plant registration requirements that apply to the machine and your jurisdiction have been checked and actioned.
- For truck-mounted machines, the base vehicle's registration and roadworthy position is confirmed for the jurisdiction it will operate in.
Step 5 — Be ready for day one
A machine is not procured until it can work legally and safely on its first morning. That means credentialed operators assigned to it, the pre-start checklist and logbook in the platform, the maintenance schedule loaded into whatever system will actually generate the reminders, and a nominated provider for its inspections and repairs.
Procurement done this way is slower at the front and much faster ever after — the machine arrives with its compliance position known, its costs counted and its paperwork complete. For help assessing a candidate machine or setting up its inspection schedule from day one, call 0416 689 689.
This guide is general information prepared by EWP Australia and is grounded in publicly available Australian Standards and Safe Work Australia material. It is not a substitute for the current published edition of the relevant standard or for site-specific engineering advice. Always work from the current standard and consult a competent person for your specific equipment and application.