Machinery Documentation: DTR, Inspections & UDT

On a building site, it isn't just about the machine working. The inspector asks for paperwork. The DTR, the inspection report, the UDT examination, the operator's qualifications - it all has to be to hand and up to date. To an inspector, equipment without documentation is equipment to be shut down. In this guide I show you what to keep and how to run a simple register so you never miss a deadline. And if you don't fancy building tables from scratch - the BudoReady packages come with ready-made equipment and inspection registers where you just fill in the names and dates.

The key points in brief

• Every machine and every power tool on a building site needs documentation - the manufacturer's DTR plus inspection reports.
• The DTR (Dokumentacja Techniczno-Ruchowa - the manufacturer's technical documentation) is the operating manual supplied by the manufacturer. You get it when you buy the machine. Keep it, don't throw it away.
• Scaffolding, work platforms, concrete mixers, power tools - everything has its own inspection. Some equipment is subject to technical supervision by the UDT (Office of Technical Inspection) and requires examinations as well as operator qualifications.
• A simple equipment register with the date and the next inspection deadline makes sure nothing slips past you.
• Equipment without a valid inspection = work stopped by the inspector. And from 8 July 2026, after its reform, the National Labour Inspectorate (PIP) penalises faster and harder.

Why you need all this machinery documentation

In short: because the law says so, and because it's your proof that the equipment is safe to use. The basis is the Regulation of the Minister of Economy of 30 October 2002 on the minimum health and safety requirements for the use of machinery by workers at work. It states clearly - a machine must be in working order, checked, and operated by people who know how.

On top of that comes technical supervision - the Act on Technical Supervision and the Office of Technical Inspection (UDT). Some equipment on a building site simply has to pass an official examination before you can even start it up. More on that in a moment.

For companies under PKD 43 (specialist construction works) this isn't theory. It's the first question the inspector asks when they walk onto the site. "Show me the paperwork for that concrete mixer." Either you have it, or you're at a standstill.

DTR - the manufacturer's manual you never throw away

DTR stands for Dokumentacja Techniczno-Ruchowa. In plain terms: the thick manual you get in the box or on a USB stick along with the machine. It tells you how to operate it, how to maintain it, what's allowed and what isn't, and what inspection intervals the manufacturer recommends.

The most common mistake foremen make? Throwing it out with the cardboard. And then the inspector asks for the DTR, and you've got a problem.

What to do with the DTR

• Keep the original - ideally in a binder or scanned onto a drive. One set in the office, one accessible on site.
• It must be in Polish. If you bought imported equipment with no Polish manual - demand one from the seller.
• The operator has to have access to it. The point isn't for them to read it every day, but for them to know where it is.
• You pull the inspection intervals from the DTR. The manufacturer states how many operating hours or months between checks of the machine. That's what you enter into your register.

No DTR because the equipment is old or bought second-hand? Try to download it from the manufacturer's website. If that's not possible - you'll need to draw up your own workstation instruction based on what you know about the machine. Better that than nothing.

Inspection reports - proof that the equipment is in working order

The DTR is the manual. The inspection is the confirmation that the machine really does work as it should. Every inspection ends with a report - and you keep that report.

Scaffolding

This is where there are the most checks and the most accidents. Scaffolding is governed by the Regulation of the Minister of Infrastructure of 6 February 2003 on health and safety in the performance of construction works.

• Scaffolding handover - before anyone steps onto it. The handover report is signed by an authorised person. Without it, the scaffolding is "dead".
• Periodic inspections - during use, at intervals in line with the regulations and the documentation.
• Ad hoc inspections - after a storm, high winds, or a longer break in the work. Something may have worked loose, so it needs checking.

Each of these inspections means an entry and a report. The scaffolding should carry a notice board stating who cleared it for use and up to what load.

Power tools

Drills, grinders, extension leads - these are equipment subject to checks too. Here it's mainly about technical condition examinations and electrical measurements. A damaged cable, a cracked housing, sparking - that's not just a fine, it's an electric shock. Keep a list of power tools and stay on top of the measurement deadlines.

Concrete mixers and small equipment

A concrete mixer, a generator, a compactor, a saw - every machine like this has its own inspection under the DTR. You check the guards, the couplings, the technical condition, the wiring. The report goes into the binder, the next deadline into the register.

It doesn't matter that the concrete mixer "still runs". The inspector doesn't care that it works - they care whether you have the paperwork proving it's in working order and when someone last confirmed that. A missing guard on the belt, a broken-off footing, bare wires - these are the classics people get caught out on during a check. That's why an inspection isn't a formality, it's your insurance policy.

What's subject to UDT supervision - watch out here

This is a different league. Some equipment, depending on its type and parameters, is subject to technical supervision and must not be started up without a UDT examination and a decision authorising it for operation. On top of that, the operator must hold qualifications.

Depending on the type and lifting capacity, equipment often covered by UDT supervision includes, among others:

• Mobile work platforms / lifts (scissor, articulated, boom).
• Cranes - tower, mobile, loader cranes (HDS).
• Hoists and winches as well as overhead travelling cranes.
• Certain mobile scaffolds and rail-mounted platforms - depending on their construction.

I write "some equipment" and "depending on the type" deliberately. Whether a particular unit is subject to supervision, and in what form, depends on its parameters. If you're in any doubt - call the UDT or ask the supplier. Better to ask than to get a work stoppage.

Two things with UDT-supervised equipment

1. The UDT examination and authorising decision. The equipment passes an examination and you receive a decision with a validity date. Without a valid decision, you don't start it up.
2. Operator qualifications. The person on the work platform or crane must hold a valid UDT qualification certificate for that type of equipment. You keep a copy on file.

Hiring a platform with an operator? Check with the supplier that the equipment has a valid UDT decision and that the operator has qualifications. Because if something happens, the questions will start with you as the person in charge of the works.

And one more thing about qualifications: they have an expiry date. Someone who did the course three years ago may already be out of date. Enter the certificate validity dates on file and stay on top of them just as you do with machine inspections. To an inspector, an out-of-date operator is the same as a machine without an examination - equipment to be taken out of service.

The equipment register - how not to miss a deadline

Here's the crux of it. You can have all the DTRs and reports, but if you don't keep on top of the deadlines, one of the inspections will "lapse" and you won't even notice. The inspector will.

The solution is dead simple: one table. You enter the equipment, its number, the date of the last inspection and - most importantly - the next deadline. You glance at it once a month and you know what's coming up.

Here's what it might look like:

Equipment / tool	No. / marking	Inspection date	Next deadline
Concrete mixer	BET-01	2026-03-10	2026-09-10
Scissor lift (UDT)	UDT-4412/25	2026-02-20	2027-02-20
Scaffolding, elevation A	RUSZT-A	2026-05-28	periodic inspection / after high winds
Angle grinder	EL-07	2026-04-15	2026-10-15
Generator	AGR-02	2026-01-30	2026-07-30

Five columns, no more philosophy needed. If you've got a lot of equipment, add a "notes" column and a "who's responsible" column. Keep it in the office and have access on site. For UDT equipment, put the validity date of the decision in the "next deadline" column - that's what the inspector checks first.

You run a PPE register and issue table the same way - the same table logic keeps track of who received a helmet and boots. Once you've got one register under control, you've got them all.

Equipment without an inspection = work stopped

Let me put it plainly. A PIP inspector who finds a machine without a valid inspection or a platform without a valid UDT decision has the right to stop the work. Not "give a warning". Stop it. And it takes effect on the spot.

What that means in practice:

• You're at a standstill. The deadline slips away, the crew sits idle, and you lose money.
• A fine for you as the employer.
• If there was an accident involving that equipment - the matter becomes far more serious.

And now mind the date: from 8 July 2026 the PIP reform comes into force. The inspectorate gets more effective tools and penalises faster. This is not the moment for "it'll sort itself out". This is the moment to have your paperwork in order ahead of time.

Equipment documentation often goes hand in hand with the IBWR safe work method statement - when it's mandatory. On works involving machines and supervised equipment these are linked topics - the inspector asks about both.

Where to start if your binder is empty

Don't panic. You do it step by step:

1. List all your equipment. Walk around the site and the store, write down everything from the concrete mixer to the grinder.
2. Gather the DTRs. Whatever you have in boxes, download the rest from the manufacturers' websites. Whatever's missing - recreate a workstation instruction.
3. Check what's subject to UDT. Platforms, cranes, hoists - verify the decisions and the operators' qualifications.
4. Fill in the inspection reports. For anything overdue - book an inspection. For anything current - file it in the binder.
5. Set up an equipment register. One table, as above. That's your early warning system.

A day's work, and you sleep easy. And when the inspector arrives, you open the binder instead of making excuses.

Ready-made registers instead of building from scratch - the STANDARD package

Tables, registers, report templates - you can put them together yourself in the evenings after work. Or take them ready-made and just fill in your own names and dates.

The STANDARD package (449 zł, 27 files) includes, among other things, equipment and inspection registers - exactly the tables I described above, plus the templates a construction micro-company under PKD 43 needs. Everything in Polish and Ukrainian, ready to print.

Got a large machinery fleet and UDT-supervised equipment? Take a look at FULL (749 zł, 45 files) - the complete set of OSH documentation. And if you're only just starting out, there's STARTER (299 zł, 10 files) for the basics.

The promotion runs until 7 July 2026 - which is just before the PIP reform comes in. Better to have your paperwork in order ahead of time than to put out fires later.

See BudoReady packages →

This article is for information purposes only and does not replace advice from an OSH specialist or the current state of the law. Document templates require individual adaptation to the realities of your company and specific job roles, and the current legal position is worth verifying as at the date you use them.