The forklift is a dangerous machinery. The most recent data have proven that more than 100 employees are killed in some form of forklift mishap. An extra 95,000 employees are hurt on the job every year as well, utilizing these heavy pieces of industrial equipment.
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 fatality is being struck by the forklift itself and last of all, getting hit from falling items due to a dropped load is the last statistic. Every death or injury is quite gruesome and awful due to the capability and immense weight of these machines.
Who Must Perform the Training?
All teaching and evaluation for forklift operation has to be taught by properly trained instructors. These trainers should have the knowledge and experience to train potential operators the required skills to assess their competence after that. Several examples of a qualified trainer consist of an individual who has a certificate, certified degree or professional standing in their possession, or who has extensive training, experience and knowledge utilizing lift trucks. A good candidate has plenty of practice and has demonstrated the ability to assess and train operators of industrial trucks.
There are resources available to choose from if their employer does not want to perform the training themselves. Like for example, they can hire in local health and safety organizations, like for example truck manufacturers, the National Safety Council local chapters, or private teaching consultants who specialize in powered industrial trucks. There are normally local trade and vocational schools which will be glad to provide several great resources.
The internet is full of web sites dedicated to the safety of lift trucks. There are also private companies which provide forklift safety training services, such as videos and written programs. Nearly all safety videos could either be purchased or rented or leased. One vital thing to think about is that simply by showing your employees a video or a series of videos on lift truck safety, does not meet the full requirements of the OSHA standard. Subsequent training and skill of the new operators must be conveyed and evaluated by a particular method so as to ensure the full training has been obtained.
When the driver has successfully passed all of the necessary training, a lift truck certificate will be issued and they will legally be able to drive a forklift. Valid lift truck certificates are a requirement by organizations so as to keep everyone at the workplace very safe.