To be able to operate any kind of forklift, certain OSHA requirements have to be met. Several businesses offer basic awareness training to other people like visitors and office staff or sales people and other non-operators who may venture into the warehouse or yard. Even if OSHA doesn't specifically deal with forklift pedestrian training, the OSHA General Duty Clause dictates that employers must take measures so as to protect employees from certain risks, like pedestrians exposed to lift trucks in motion.
A huge concern that would need to be addressed is pedestrian safety. According to the NIOSH or the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health; about 20 percent of all forklift mishaps consist of a pedestrian being struck by a forklift. This statistic means about 19,000 individuals on an annual basis.
However briefly or frequently people are around industrial trucks during their work day, there are several basic steps that must be taken so as to keep everyone safe. Amongst the major factors is that lift truck pedestrian mishaps often occur in situations where the pedestrian is ignorant of safety measures. Problems also occur more frequently when the pedestrian ends up complacent because he or she has become used to frequent interaction with forklifts.
There are several common situations to look out for so as to avoid placing yourself at possible risk from being struck by a lift truck. Pedestrians not seeing the lift truck is a common problem which needs to be addressed. Numerous operations have various degrees of intersections or blind corners which pedestrians need to be aware of. At times pedestrians do not hear the lift truck. Be careful of the different types of power sources. Like for instance, electric trucks could be much quieter as opposed to IC engines that are really loud.
The other main issues are when pedestrians come in too near the machinery. Common sense tells us that in order for a pedestrian to be injured by a lift truck, the pedestrian has to be in close enough proximity to be struck. For a forklift that is working, a four foot safety zone is suggested in order to make a safe perimeter for everyone. This helps to address risks like for instance the unit driving accidentally over a pedestrian's foot.
Following and implementing strict safety protocol helps to make certain that the workplace safety stays top notch and remains paramount.