Safety Instructions About Forklifts
Forklifts are industrial vehicles made to take the place of
manual lifting and manual work. There are two "forks" or arms
located at the front of the vehicle that are used to lift,
lower, stack and unstack heavy loads. The loads are usually
stacked on top of wooden pallets that the arms or forks fit into
to bring a large quantity of things up or down at once. The
drivers cause almost 50% of accidents involving forklifts.
Normally, the driver has hit a pedestrian. Therefore, forklifts
and people should not be in the vicinity of each other.
Some other forklift related accidents include:
Forklift tipping over and overturning Collision with other
vehicles or stationary objects Part of the operator's body
leaning out of the cabin and hitting an object The load falling
off the pallets
There are things that can be done by the employee to reduce the
number of forklift accidents. First, the driver should always
perform a pre-safety check of the vehicle before operating. Once
the driver sees that all is in tact, while driving the vehicle
the driver should use safe handling procedures of the load. This
includes paying close attention to the load limit of each
particular forklift. Since forklifts are a gas-powered vehicle,
gasoline limits and storage should be carefully observed. In
addition to safe fuel use, the battery also needs to be handled
and cared for properly to ensure safety.
Here are a few safety procedures that should be followed by all
employees. Some of them may seem like common sense, but they are
so important that they are in need of repeating.
Passengers on forklifts to be strictly forbidden, unless there
is a separate seat provided with a restraint Other people kept
clear when forklift is operating Operator should take care when
moving between artificial and natural light Load made secure and
lowered to safe centre of gravity before carrying Sudden stops
and starts are to be avoided No part of the operator's body to
protrude beyond the overhead protection Ramps not to be used
unless the forklift operator is trained in their use Operator to
remain seated and secured at all times Forklift to operate
within a designated area, separate from pedestrians Operator to
remain in the cabin when a forklift overturns Most importantly:
PEOPLE SHOULD NEVER BE RAISED ON THE FORKLIFT OR THE PALLETS IF
THERE IS NO OTHER WAY TO LIFT A WORKER, A PROPER WORK PLATFORM
MUST BE USED In addition to checking the vehicle daily for
safety hazards, the workplace should also be checked for the
following:
Power-lines Blind corners Pedestrian areas Low doorways Uneven
floors Ramps Overhead pipes and fittings Confined spaces
Adequate lighting Noise
Above all else, a training coarse must be completed before
attempting to drive or operate a forklift. Besides formal
instruction, the training must include practical training (such
as demonstrations) and an evaluation of the operator in the
workplace to assure that he can operate the forklift safely.
Initial training content must consist of both truck-related
topics and workplace-related topics.
Some truck-related topics include:
operating instructions, warnings and precautions specific to the
trucks the employee will be authorized to operate differences
between the truck and the automobile truck controls and
instrumentation engine or motor operation steering and
maneuvering visibility fork and attachment adaptation, operation
and use limitations; vehicle capacity vehicle stability any
vehicle inspection and maintenance that the operator must
perform; refueling and/or charging and recharging of batteries
operating limitations any other information from the forklift
operator's manual. Some workplace related topics include:
surface conditions where the vehicle will be operated
composition of loads and load stability load manipulation,
stacking and unstacking pedestrian traffic narrow aisles and
other restricted places where the vehicle will be operated any
hazardous (classified) locations, such as flammable storage
areas, where the vehicle will be operated ramps and other sloped
surfaces; closed environments and other areas where insufficient
ventilation or poor vehicle maintenance could cause a buildup of
carbon monoxide or diesel exhaust; and other unique or
potentially hazardous environmental conditions in the workplace.