What's the Risk With
Forklifts?
Forklift or Powered Industrial Truck safety training is a big issue and it
should be; the monetary damages and loss of life that can result from accidents with forklifts are staggering.
Two recent payouts for forklift accidents included $750,000 to a worker who injured his back in a forklift
accident and another payout for $2.5 million to a victim whose foot was amputated by a
forklift.
Our forklift safety training
program consists of 30 topics and is taught by professional trainers with over 18 years of experience in all
facets of the forklift business. Our classroom portion takes approximately 4 hours including video, classroom
discussion and a written test. Everyone must pass this test to continue to the hands on evaluation portion.
Our hands on evaluations are
done until your operator can demonstrate understanding and driving competencies or if they can’t, they will not
get a certificate.
Programs such as this can help
you improve your bottom line by reducing accidents, work disruptions and product or facilities damage. According
to industry studies, effective operator training can improve worker safety performance by up to 70 percent or
more.
"A lot of people think that if
they just go to some generic course and they're trained on the forklift, they're good to go," says Patrick
Kapust, safety and health specialist for occupational and safety health specialists at the Occupational Safety
and Health Administration (OSHA).
"But as part of the standard,
there are not only truck-related topics, there are also workplace related topics, where you need to go over the
types of conditions at the specific place where the truck is going to be operated," says Kapust. "There could be
blind corners, there could be ramps, and there could be traffic considerations and so forth."
According to OSHA Regulation
1910.178 "The employer shall ensure that each powered industrial truck operator is competent to operate a
powered industrial truck safely, as demonstrated by the successful completion of the training and evaluation…"
The regulation goes on to say that the training shall consist not only of formal instruction and practical
training, but also "evaluation of the operator's performance in the workplace." This means, if you’re working
with a training company and you send your employees to their facility to get certified, you haven’t met the OSHA
standard.
An important part of the
training is to go over whatever specific issues may be at your work site. Workplace conditions that operators should be trained for
must include:
-
Surface conditions where the vehicle
will be operated;
-
Composition of loads to be carried
and load stability;
-
Pedestrian traffic in areas where the
vehicle will be operated;
-
Narrow aisles and other restricted
places where the vehicle will be operated;
-
Hazardous (classified) locations
where the vehicle will be operated;
-
Ramps and other sloped surfaces that
could affect the vehicle's stability;
-
Closed environments and other areas
where insufficient ventilation or poor vehicle maintenance could cause a buildup of carbon monoxide or
diesel exhaust; and
-
Other unique or potentially hazardous
environmental conditions in the workplace that could affect safe operation.
A lot of people think that
they can just order a CD and put someone in front of a computer and then that person is certified. You better think again. The
OSHA standard is specific about it's forklift training requirements and if you don't meet them and an
accident occurs, the plaintiffs attorney will have you for breakfast.
To Schedule a Forklift Training Class
call 954-389-3544
Pulse America services the following
communities in the Ft Lauderdale Florida area:
Dania, Doral, Hallandale,
Hollywood, Ft Lauderdale, Pembroke Pines, Davie, Lauderhill, Sunrise, Plantation, Weston, Miramar, Coral
Springs, Margate, Coconut Creek, Tamarac, Pompano Beach, Deerfield Beach, Boca Raton, Boynton Beach, Delray,
Wellington, Lake Worth, West Palm Beach, Jupiter, Hobe Sound, Jensen Beach, Port St. Lucie, Fort Pierce,
Miami, Hialeah,
Kendall, Coral Gables, Miami Beach, Miami Lakes, Opa Locka, North Miami
and Homestead.
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