[Interpretation of the Special Equipment Safety Law] Article 57

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Article 57 The departments responsible for the safety supervision and management of special equipment shall, in accordance with the provisions of this Law, carry out supervision and inspection on entities engaged in the production, operation, and use of special equipment, as well as on inspection and testing institutions. The departments responsible for the safety supervision and management of special equipment shall conduct focused safety inspections on such equipment in places where people gather, including schools, kindergartens, hospitals, stations, passenger terminals, shopping malls, sports venues, exhibition halls, and parks. Interpretation of the provision: This article specifies the subjects of supervision and inspection, as well as the contents and key aspects of such supervision and inspection. I. Subjects of supervision and inspection. In accordance with this provision, the entities subject to supervision and inspection mainly include the following 4: (1) Special equipment manufacturing units, including design units, manufacturing units, installation units, renovation units, and repair units. (II) Special equipment business entities, including sales entities, leasing entities, and import entities. (III) Users of special equipment, primarily the owners of such equipment, as well as those who have actual management rights, and units responsible for filling mobile pressure vessels and gas cylinders. (IV) Special equipment inspection and testing institutions. II. Contents of supervision and inspection. In accordance with the responsibilities and authorities stipulated in these regulations, supervision and inspection are carried out on the production activities, business operations, and daily use management of special equipment, as well as on the inspection and testing activities conducted by inspection and testing agencies. In accordance with the law, those responsible for the production, operation, use, inspection, and testing of special equipment are urged to earnestly fulfill all the obligations specified in these regulations. III. Key targets for supervision and inspection. The key targets of supervision and inspection are public places with high concentrations of people that use special equipment. Due to the high level of danger associated with special equipment, accidents can easily pose a threat to public safety. Once an accident occurs in a crowded public place, it will inevitably lead to serious consequences, such as mass deaths and injuries. Therefore, special equipment in public crowded places must be regarded as key areas for supervision and inspection. These key locations are mainly schools, kindergartens, hospitals, stations, passenger terminals, shopping malls, sports venues, exhibition halls, and parks. These places not only have a high density of people, but also often have a larger number of special equipment compared to other locations. Things such as the various escalators and elevators in shopping malls, as well as the numerous large-scale amusement facilities in parks, are all sources of potential hazards for special equipment accidents; inadequate supervision can easily lead to such accidents. On June 29, 2010, the collapse of a large amusement ride resulted in 6 deaths and 10 injuries. According to the investigation conducted by the accident investigation team, the ride had serious design flaws; potential problems were identified during installation and testing but were not properly addressed, and maintenance was inadequate during its operation. Furthermore, this device also has minor defects in its manufacturing process. It further explains the safety supervision of special equipment, particularly that of such equipment in key locations; strict controls must be implemented at all stages of production, operation, and use to prevent the occurrence of such accidents. In their work, the departments responsible for the safety supervision and management of special equipment should increase the frequency of inspections in key locations and intensify these inspections, especially during holidays such as National Day and Spring Festival, as well as on other days when there is a significant increase in foot traffic, to ensure proper supervision of the safety of special equipment in those areas.