The lift truck is a dangerous machine. The newest statistics have shown that over 100 employees are killed in some form of forklift mishap. 95,000 more employees are injured on the job every year as well, using these heavy pieces of industrial machinery.
Most fatalities have been because of lift truck turnovers. Being crushed between the lift truck and another surface is the second highest percentage of fatalities. The third highest cause of fatality is being struck by the forklift itself and lastly, getting hit from falling objects because of a dropped load is the last statistic. Each and every injury or fatality is quite awful and gruesome because of the ability and immense weight of these machinery.
Who Should Conduct the Training?
All training and evaluation for forklift operation has to be taught by appropriately trained instructors. These trainers should have the experience and knowledge to teach potential operators the necessary skills to evaluate their competence after that. Some examples of a qualified trainer consist of a person who has a license, certified degree or professional status in their possession, or someone who has extensive training, knowledge and experience using forklifts. A good candidate has plenty of experience and has demonstrated the capability to evaluate and train operators of industrial trucks.
There are resources accessible to pick from if their employer does not wish to perform the training themselves. Like for example, they could hire in local health and safety organizations, like for instance the National Safety Council local chapters, truck manufacturers, or private teaching consultants who specialize in powered industrial trucks. There are normally local trade and vocational schools which would be glad to provide several great resources.
The internet is full of websites dedicated to the safety of lift trucks. There are also private companies that provide lift truck safety training services, such as written programs and videos. The majority of safety videos can either be purchased or leased or rented. One essential thing to think about is that simply by showing your workers a series of videos or a video on forklift safety, does not meet the full requirements of the OSHA standard. Subsequent training and knowledge of the new operators needs to be conveyed and evaluated by a particular method so as to ensure the complete training has been acquired.
Once drivers have passed their training requirements, they would be given a lift truck license that allows them to drive a forklift. Valid forklift licenses are a requirement by organizations in order to keep everyone at the workplace as safe as possible.