The forklift is a dangerous equipment. The latest statistics have shown that over 100 workers are killed in some form of lift truck accident. 95,000 more employees are hurt on the job on an annual basis too, using these heavy pieces of industrial machines.
Unfortunately, most of the fatalities are due to lift truck turnovers. The second highest percentage of fatalities is due to being crushed between a lift truck and another surface. The third highest cause of death is being struck by the lift truck itself and last of all, getting hit from falling things because of a dropped load is the last statistic. Every fatality or injury is quite frightening and terrible because of the capability and immense weight of these machines.
Who Must Perform the Training?
All teaching and evaluation for forklift operation has to be trained by appropriately trained instructors. These trainers should have the experience and knowledge to train potential operators the necessary skills to evaluate their competency after that. Some examples of a qualified trainer include a person who has a license, certified degree or professional standing in their possession, or who has extensive training, experience and knowledge utilizing lift trucks. A good candidate has lots of practice and has demonstrated the ability to train and assess drivers of industrial trucks.
There are resources accessible to choose from if their employer does not want to perform the training themselves. For instance, they can hire in local health and safety organizations, like for example truck manufacturers, the National Safety Council local chapters, or private training consultants who specialize in powered industrial trucks. There are usually local trade and vocational schools that will be very happy to provide several great resources.
The World Wide Web is full of web sites committed to the safety of lift trucks. There are also private businesses that provide forklift safety training services, like written programs and videos. Nearly all safety videos can either be rented or leased or purchased. One vital factor to think about is that simply by showing your workers a video or a series of videos on lift truck safety, does not meet the full requirements of the OSHA standard. Succeeding training and knowledge of the new operators should be conveyed and evaluated by a specific way in order to ensure the full training has been obtained.
Once operators have passed their training requirements, they will receive a forklift certificate which enables them to drive a forklift. Valid forklift licenses are a requirement by organizations in order to keep everyone at the workplace really safe.