Track and Undercarriage Maintenance SWMS

Suits plant fitters, heavy plant workshops, hire companies and civil contractors who service dozer and excavator undercarriages in the workshop or the field. It follows the job from isolating and supporting the machine, through releasing track tension, splitting the chain and lifting rollers, idlers and sprockets, to refitting, tensioning and returning the machine to service. Working under raised plant components in general is covered by a separate SWMS.

Undercarriage maintenance on a dozer or excavator is mostly not high risk construction work, so no item is pre-ticked and a SWMS is required by law only for high risk construction work (WHS Regulation s 299). If the work is part of construction work, tick the reg 291 items that apply, for example item 14 (movement of powered mobile plant) on a site where plant moves. Otherwise it works as a written safe work procedure and task risk assessment. Mines and quarries covered by the mining safety Acts are outside the WHS Act.

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

What Is Covered In Our Track and Undercarriage Maintenance SWMS?

After the standard pre-start checks, the job steps run from “Plan the job, prepare the work area and brief the crew” to “Lower the machine, test, return to service and clean up”. The hazards and controls include:

• Track tension grease released under pressure
• Stored energy in the track adjuster and recoil spring
• Machine or track falling from supports
• Master pin or link ejecting when pressed
• Heavy rollers, idlers and sprockets dropping during lifts
• Hands crushed in the track chain and sprocket
• Overloaded slings, chains and hoists
• Machine starting or moving during the work
• Sparks and fire when cutting worn parts
• Noise from presses and impact tools
• Strains from heavy components
• Oil and grease spills and waste

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 equivalent experience in heavy plant fitting, verified by the PCBU, with training in the machine maker’s undercarriage procedures
• Training in the special tools used (track press or master pin tool, track adjuster tools, track jack and spring tools), suitable and adequate for the work (WHS Regulation s 39), with a record kept by the PCBU
• Training in the isolation and lock-out procedure used by the business, and in recognising stored energy in hydraulics, springs and raised weight
• Training in high pressure grease and oil injection injuries, and in the response: urgent medical attention even when the wound looks small
• Dogging licence (Schedule 3 item 4), or a rigging class that includes dogging work (items 5 to 7), for the person who does dogging work as Schedule 19 defines it: applying slinging techniques, including the selection and inspection of lifting gear, to safely sling a load, or directing a plant operator in the movement of a load when the load is out of the operator’s view; a trainee works only under the supervision of a licensed dogger (WHS Regulation ss 81 and 82(1))
• High risk work licence of the class Schedule 3 sets, where it sets one, for any crane (items 8 to 18) or hoist used, and for the forklift truck class where a forklift moves components (item 24); no high risk work licence class covers operating a dozer or excavator in general
• Site induction, and the general construction induction training card (white card) where the work is on a construction site
• First aider on site or within reach (WHS Regulation s 42)

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 203, 206, 207, 208(5), 210 and 213: plant risk management, proper use, plant not in use, guarding removed for maintenance (so far as reasonably practicable the plant cannot restart until it is replaced), operator controls that can be locked into the off position, and maintenance by a competent person
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) ss 214 and 215: powered mobile plant, including collisions with people and mechanical failure of pressurised elements
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) s 219, Schedule 3 and Schedule 19: plant that lifts loads, high risk work licences and dogging work
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) ss 36, 39, 42, 44 and 60: hierarchy of controls, training, first aid, personal protective equipment and hazardous manual tasks
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) ss 53 and 355: flammable and combustible substances kept to the lowest practicable quantity, and ignition sources kept out of a hazardous area, where parts are cut or heated
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) ss 56 and 57: noise exposure standard and hearing loss
• WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) ss 351 and 357: hazardous chemical risks and spills
• Managing Risks of Plant in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021 (isolating energy sources, including stored energy)
• Hazardous Manual Tasks Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Risks of Hazardous Chemicals in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Noise and Preventing Hearing Loss at Work Code of Practice 2021
• Managing the Work Environment and Facilities Code of Practice 2021
• First Aid in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Welding Processes Code of Practice 2021 (where parts are cut or heated)
• Mobile Crane Code of Practice 2024 (where a mobile crane lifts components)
• How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks Code of Practice 2021
• Electrical Safety Regulation 2026 (Qld): overhead power line exclusion zones in sections 10 to 13 and schedule 2

What You Get

• An editable Microsoft Word document (15 A4 landscape pages). Type your business, client and job details once and they fill in on every page, with a space for your logo
• 10 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 toe protection and oil-resistant soles
• Emergency arrangements for: high pressure grease or oil injection, machine or part falls or a person is trapped and fire or large oil spill
• 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.