Safety Tidbit #33 – Observable Forklift Safety

Safety Tidbit #33 – Observable Forklift Safety

As many of you know, a pet-peeve of mine is forklift safety.  Proper maintenance and diligent supervision of forklift operation play a big part in ensuring no workers get hurt.  OSHA’s Powered Industrial Truck (AKA forklift) Standard delineates what training is to be provided (see Safety Tidbit #19).  However, really I am interested in the day to day execution of the training.  As I conduct my site walk-through, looking for hazards and getting a general sense of the company’s safety program and culture, I pay particular attention to several environmental and material forklift issues.  Interestingly, OSHA’s standard actually states twice that if a forklift in need of repair, defective, or in any way unsafe, that the truck is removed from service and fixed [1910.178(p)(1) and 1910.178(q)(1)] and that an authorized person makes these repairs.

Since many of my clients are small businesses, some of them only use their forklifts occasionally, such as, weekly or even monthly.  For them, I recommend they inspect the forklift before use or before putting the forklift into service.  Note, the forklift standard views “placed in service” as a daily evolution.  Therefore, all forklifts must be inspected before being placed in service, at least, daily or at the end if each shift if used for multiple shifts during the day [1910.178(q)(7)].  Some examples of unsafe conditions include broken welds, missing bolts, or damage to the overhead guard or tires that are missing large pieces of rubber. Is the alarm loud enough to be identified above the noise in the workplace?  An unsafe condition I see quite often is a missing tank locator pin on propane forklifts.  The pin lets the operator know the when fuel tank correctly positioned.  Although the fuel tank can be attached to the feed hose without being in the proper place the stress on the hose connection or the improper securing of the hose to the fuel tank may lead to leaks and subsequently an explosion or fire hazard.

As I noted above, during my walk-through I also am observing the operators for safe operation.  So, are they slowing down and sounding their horn when crossing aisles, turning corners or where vision is limited [1910.178(n)(4) & 1910.178(n)(15)]? Are grades or ramps ascended or descended slowly [1910.178(n)(7)]?  If operators are loading trailers are the trailer wheels blocked to prevent movement [1910.178(m)(7)]?  Also, have they inspected the floor of the trailer for weakness [1910.178(m)(7)]?  If they are loading highway trucks, have they set the brakes and chocked the rear wheels to prevent the trucks from rolling [1910.178(k)(1)]?

Do drivers keep their hands and arms inside the uprights of the mast [1910.178(m)(4)]? Is anyone riding on the forklift that is not the driver [1910.178(m)(3)]?  If workers must be lifted using a personnel cage attached to the forklift is it approved by the forklift manufacturer [1910.178(q)(6)]?

And last but not least, is there adequate lighting or does the forklift have auxiliary lighting where the area is less than 2 lumens (which, in my opinion, is too dark).

I hope you found this helpful and thanks for reading.