Forklift Abuse

A few entries ago, we mentioned something that started a conversation.  We stated that typically, most of the damage to a forklift is caused by (insert drum roll here) employee abuse.

That raised some eyebrows among our customers.

To be clear, usually damage to a forklift is not caused by mindful reckless conduct (although that does happen). It’s caused by employees who may not know better due to lack of training.

The internet is loaded with videos of forklifts toppling over due to an unbalanced load or traveling on an uneven surface. While the milder of these can be entertaining to look at as long as you’re not the owner of that truck, the truth is these incidents are extremely dangerous and every year employees are killed in accidents involving forklifts, so they’re no laughing matter.

As a business owner/manager, it falls on you to ensure your operators know what they are doing. Drivers should be trained every three years, as new developments and best practices are introduced.

Make sure your drivers are completing the pre-shift and post-shift inspections. Hold them accountable for this, it can catch a lot of problems before they become costly. We’ve covered the inspections in this very blog.

Make your facility as safe as it can be, too. Drivers need to be trained and licensed (we can’t say that too many times) and they should always wear appropriate clothing- hard hats, safety shoes, hi-visibility jackets, etc. They shouldn’t wear loose clothing that can get caught in machinery.

Finally, having the correct forklift for the work you are asking it to do is extremely important as well. Asking a small forklift to do too much is looking for trouble.

Our staff at Atlantic Forklift Services knows more about this stuff than just about anyone.  Contact us for a FREE in-plant survey to help determine how you can best safely operate your forklift.