In order to use any type of lift truck, certain OSHA requirements have to be met. Some companies offer basic awareness training to other individuals such as visitors and office staff or sales people and other non-operators who might venture into the warehouse or yard. Though OSHA doesn't particularly address forklift pedestrian training, the OSHA General Duty Clause dictates that employers have to take measures so as to protect employees from some dangers, like for example pedestrians exposed to lift trucks in motion.
A huge problem that would have to be addressed is pedestrian safety. Based on the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health or NIOSH; about 20% of all forklift mishaps consist of a pedestrian being struck by a forklift. This statistic means roughly 19,000 individuals each year.
Nonetheless briefly or frequently individuals are around industrial trucks in their work day, there are several basic steps which must be taken in order to keep everyone safe. One of the major factors is that lift truck pedestrian accidents often happen in cases where the pedestrian is ignorant of safety precautions. Issues also occur more often when the pedestrian has become used to frequent interaction with forklifts and ends up complacent.
There are several common situations to look out for so as to prevent placing yourself at potential risk from being struck by a forklift. Pedestrians not seeing the lift truck is a common problem that needs to be dealt with. Numerous operations have varying degrees of intersections or blind corners which pedestrians should be aware of. At times pedestrians do not hear the lift truck. Be careful of the various kinds of power sources. For instance, electric trucks may be much quieter than internal combustion engines that are really loud.
The other major issues are when pedestrians come in too near the machine. Common sense tells us that in order for a pedestrian to be injured by a forklift, the pedestrian has to be near to be struck. For a forklift that is working, a four foot safety zone is suggested in order to make a safe perimeter for everybody. This helps to deal with risks like the model accidentally driving over the foot of a pedestrian.
Implementing and following strict safety protocol helps to make certain that the workplace safety stays top notch and remains paramount.