Forklifts are really dangerous piece of machinery. Data by OSHA prove that about 100 warehouse workers are killed each year in lift truck accidents while they are utilizing them. 95,000 more workers are injured on the job each and every year as well, using these heavy pieces of industrial equipment.
Sadly, nearly all of the fatalities are due to forklift turnovers. The next highest percentage of fatalities is due to being crushed between a forklift and another surface. The third highest cause of fatality is being struck by the lift truck itself and lastly, getting hit from falling items because of a dropped load is the last statistic. Each and every fatality or injury is quite gruesome and awful due to the capability and immense weight of these machines.
Who Must Perform the Training?
All evaluation and training needs to be taught by people who have the right education, knowledge and experience to train powered industrial truck drivers the correct skills and then to evaluate their competency after that. Several examples of a qualified trainer consist of an individual who has a certificate, specialized degree or professional standing in their possession, or who has extensive training, knowledge and experience utilizing lift trucks. A good candidate has a lot of practice and has shown the ability to train and evaluate operators of industrial trucks.
There are resources available to select from if their employer does not want to perform the training themselves. Like for example, they can hire in local health and safety organizations, including the National Safety Council local chapters, truck manufacturers, or private training consultants who specialize in powered industrial trucks. There are often local trade and vocational schools which would be really glad to offer several great resources.
There are many web sites on the Internet who are devoted to lift truck safety. Private companies can be found on-line that offer lift truck safety training services, like videos and written programs. The majority of safety videos can either be leased or rented or bought. One really important thing to consider is that simply by showing your employees a series of videos or a video about forklift safety, does not meet the full requirements of the OSHA standard. Subsequent training and skill of the new operators should be conveyed and evaluated by a particular method so as to ensure the full training has been obtained.
When drivers have passed their training requirements, they will receive a lift truck certificate which allows them to drive a lift truck. Valid lift truck certificates are a requirement by organizations in order to keep everyone at the workplace as safe as possible.