Chassis Straightening Rack SWMS

Suits collision repair shops and panel beaters who pull vehicle chassis and bodies back to the maker’s dimensions on a straightening rack. It follows the work in order, from reading the repair procedure and checking chains, clamps and hydraulics to mounting the vehicle, making it safe, pulling under tension, measuring, releasing the tension and locking out. Welding, panel work and hybrid or electric vehicle servicing need their own SWMS.

A chassis straightening rack in a workshop is not high risk construction work, so WHS Regulation s 299 requires a SWMS only if the work is part of high risk construction work. Otherwise the document works as a written safe work procedure and task risk assessment, and no high risk construction work item is pre-ticked. If the work is part of construction work, tick the items that apply, such as work on or near fuel or refrigerant lines (s 291(j)) or in an area with powered mobile plant movement (s 291(o)).

New to SWMS? Read What Is A Safe Work Method Statement?

What Is Covered In Our Chassis Straightening Rack SWMS?

After the standard pre-start checks, the job steps run from “Plan the repair and check the vehicle and the rack” to “Lower the vehicle, clean up, lock out and record”. The hazards and controls include:

• Chain, clamp or anchor failure under tension
• Stored energy in loaded chains and the strained vehicle body
• Vehicle falling or rolling off the rack or stands
• Hydraulic hose failure and fluid injection injuries
• Airbags and pretensioners firing during a pull
• Fuel leaks and fire near the vehicle
• Crush injuries at clamps, towers and ramps
• Missing guards or a faulty emergency stop
• Eye injury from laser measuring equipment
• Strains from heavy clamps, towers and chains
• Hearing loss from hammering and air tools
• High-voltage parts on hybrid and electric vehicles

High Risk Construction Work

None of the high risk construction work items (WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) s 291) are pre-ticked, because this job is not high risk construction work by itself. Tick any that apply on your site.

Licences, Training and Competency

• Trade qualification or on-the-job training and sign-off in collision repair, covering the straightening rack, clamps, towers, chains, hydraulic pump and measuring system, as the equipment maker teaches them (no high risk work licence class in Schedule 3 applies to a straightening rack)
• Operator training in the rack’s controls, emergency stop, pressure release valve and the maker’s pull limits
• Training in the vehicle maker’s repair procedure for airbags, seatbelt pretensioners, fuel systems and high-voltage parts before anyone works on those vehicles
• Competent person to maintain, inspect and test the rack, chains, clamps, hoses and rams to the maker’s recommendations (WHS Regulation s 213)
• Training for anyone who operates laser measuring equipment in its proper use (WHS Regulation s 223(5)), where such equipment is used
• Training in the hazardous chemicals used (SDS read) and in the fit and use of the PPE chosen
• A licensed electrical worker for any electrical work on workshop wiring or the power supply to the rack (Electrical Safety Act 2002 s 55); a vehicle’s own propulsion system is outside the Act’s definition of electrical equipment (s 14(2)), so competence on it rests on the training and the vehicle maker’s procedure above
• First aider on site, briefed on crush injuries, high-pressure fluid injection, eye injuries and burns (WHS Regulation s 42)
• Workshop induction; general construction induction training card (white card) only if the work is construction work

Legislation and Codes of Practice Referenced

• Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld)
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld)
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) ss 205 to 213: plant (unauthorised alterations s 205, proper use s 206, plant not in use s 207, guarding s 208, operational controls s 210, emergency stops s 211, maintenance and inspection s 213)
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) s 219: plant that lifts or suspends loads
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) s 223: lasers (where laser measuring equipment is used)
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) s 243 and Schedule 5, Part 1, item 1.13: design registration of vehicle hoists
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) ss 56 and 57: noise exposure standard and managing the risk of hearing loss
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) s 60: managing risks of hazardous manual tasks
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) ss 52, 53 and 355: ignition sources, flammable and combustible material, fire and explosion
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) ss 351 and 357: managing risks of hazardous chemicals and containing spills
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) s 42: first aid; ss 36 and 44: hierarchy of control measures and personal protective equipment
• Managing Risks of Plant in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021 (guarding s 4.1, isolating energy sources s 4.5)
• Hazardous Manual Tasks Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Noise and Preventing Hearing Loss at Work Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Risks of Hazardous Chemicals in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Managing the Work Environment and Facilities Code of Practice 2021
• First Aid in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks Code of Practice 2021
• Electrical Safety Act 2002 (Qld): s 14(2) (electrical equipment does not include apparatus, cable or wiring that is part of a vehicle’s propulsion unit or powered from it) and s 55 (electrical work licence)

What You Get

• An editable Microsoft Word document (16 A4 landscape pages). Type your business, client and job details once and they fill in on every page, with a space for your logo
• 11 job steps for this work, each with its hazards, controls, initial and residual risk scores and the person responsible
• PPE listed for this job: safety boots with steel or composite toe caps; safety glasses with side shields; a face shield when releasing or working near hydraulic lines under pressure
• Emergency arrangements for: chain, clamp or anchor fails under load, vehicle slips or falls from the rack or stands and hydraulic fluid injected into the skin, even from a small wound
• Plus the parts every Work Safety QLD SWMS shares, from the s 291 checklist to the worker sign-on sheet (see the layout in our free SWMS template)

Adjust it for your site, plant and crew, and talk it through with your workers before work starts. Please make sure you read our Disclaimer before downloading this SWMS.

Checked against the Queensland laws and codes of practice listed above. Last reviewed November 2026.