The forklift is a dangerous machine. The most recent data have shown that over 100 workers are killed in some type of forklift accident. 95,000 more employees 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 lift truck turnovers. The next highest percentage of fatalities is due to being crushed between a lift truck and another surface. The next highest cause of fatality is being struck by the forklift itself and lastly, getting hit from falling items because of a dropped load is the last statistic. Each fatality or injury is quite frightening and terrible due to the immense weight and capability of these machines.
Who Must Conduct the Training?
All assessment and teaching has to be taught by individuals who have the right training, knowledge and experience to train powered industrial truck operators the correct skills and then to evaluate their competence after that. Some examples of a skilled trainer include an individual who has a certificate, professional standing or certified degree in their possession, or who has extensive training, experience and knowledge with lift trucks. A good candidate has lots of experience and has demonstrated the ability to teach and evaluate drivers of industrial trucks.
There are resources accessible to select from if their employer does not want to perform the training themselves. For instance, they can employ in local health and safety organizations, like the National Safety Council local chapters, truck manufacturers, or private teaching consultants who specialize in powered industrial trucks. There are usually local trade and vocational schools which would be happy to offer some great resources.
There are numerous web sites on the World Wide Web that are dedicated to lift truck safety. Private businesses can be found on-line that provide lift truck safety training services, like videos and written programs. Most safety videos could either be purchased or leased or rented. One really essential thing to take into consideration is that simply by showing your employees a video or a series of videos on 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 way so as to ensure the full training has been acquired.
When the driver has successfully passed all of the required training, a lift truck license will be given and they would legally be able to drive a lift truck. Valid lift truck certificates are a requirement by organizations to be able to keep everyone at the workplace as safe as possible.