Forklifts are very dangerous machines. Statistics by OSHA prove that around 100 warehouse workers are killed every year in lift truck mishaps while they are using them. 95,000 more employees are injured on the job on a yearly basis as well, utilizing these heavy pieces of industrial machines.
Unfortunately, most of the fatalities are because of forklift turnovers. The next 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 but not least, getting hit from falling objects because of a dropped load is the last statistic. Every injury or fatality is quite gruesome and terrible because of the ability and immense weight of these machinery.
Who Must Conduct the Training?
All teaching and assessment for forklift operation has to be taught by correctly trained instructors. These trainers must have the knowledge and experience to teach potential operators the required skills to assess their competency after that. Some examples of a skilled trainer include a person who has a certificate, professional standing or specialized degree in their possession, or who has extensive training, experience and knowledge utilizing lift trucks. A good candidate has a lot of experience and has demonstrated the capability to assess and train drivers of industrial trucks.
If the employer does not want to perform the training himself, there are numerous resources accessible for them to pick from. For instance, 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 vocational and trade schools which will be happy to provide several great resources.
There are a lot of websites on the World Wide Web which are committed to forklift safety. Private businesses can be found online that provide lift truck safety training services, such as written programs and videos. Nearly all safety videos could either be leased or rented or purchased. One important factor to consider is that simply by showing your workers a series of videos or a video about lift truck safety, does not meet the full requirements of the OSHA standard. Subsequent training and skill of the new operators should be conveyed and assessed by a particular method so as to ensure the complete training has been acquired.
When operators have passed their training requirements, they would receive a forklift certificate which enables them to drive a forklift. Valid forklift licenses are a requirement by organizations to be able to keep everybody at the workplace really safe.