A regular examination is essential for any business that operates with forklift trucks and other material-handling equipment. Every employer has the responsibility to ensure the equipment operating within their business is safe for both the operators and anyone nearby. 

Several safety precautions can contribute to a safer working environment, such as risk assessments, ongoing operator monitoring and ensuring that any incidents are recorded, and so on.

However there is one extremely important precaution, and that’s carrying out daily forklift safety checks. Alongside these, at least once a year it’s required that forklifts undergo a mandatory thorough examination.

A well-maintained forklift is essential to any business, and neglecting to do so can have dire consequences.

What Is a Forklift Examination?

Forklifts are required to be inspected at least once daily before operators begin work. These daily forklift checks are essential to ensure the vehicle is in safe operating condition, if these inspections are not carried out correctly it increases the risk of accidents, injury, or even death.

On top of pre-shift examinations, there is also a legal requirement to carry out a Thorough Examination. This is similar to the annual MOT test for your car and is used to ensure that the forklift is in safe and productive condition. A Thorough Examination should be carried out by a competent person at least once a year.

Daily Forklift Truck Examinations

Forklifts, although an essential piece of equipment to many businesses, can also be very dangerous if poorly maintained or used incorrectly. That’s why operators are required to carry out forklift examinations before their shift, to check if the forklift is in suitable working condition. The checks also identify any minor faults, and doing so will help to avoid major issues developing that lead to costly repairs.

There are several things they look out for, and for them to be competent enough to carry out these daily checks, operators must undergo training. At the beginning of a shift, or just before use, the operator must perform two checks, the visual check and the operational check.

The Visual Check

When carrying out the visual check the operator must inspect several aspects of the truck including the general condition and cleanliness, wheels and tyres, battery and the position of the forks. This helps to identify leaks, excessive tyre wear and minor damage that can be rectified before the issue becomes dangerous.

OPERATIONAL CHECK

The operational check is carried out to prevent mechanical or operational failures. This involves checking both the foot brake and parking brake, steering, and lift mechanism are just a few of the many things that need to be examined from an operational viewpoint.

The pre-shift inspection should only take a few minutes, but forklift operators must know how to check the general working parts of the forklift truck for any signs of wear or damage. This requires operators to undergo proper training.

Stressing the importance of proper pre-shift inspections is essential when it comes to keeping your employees safe onsite.

Thorough Forklift Examinations

Although daily forklift inspections are essential, it’s also required that a more in-depth and detailed inspection is carried out every 4, 6 to 12 months under the Lifting Operations & Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 (LOLER98) and the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER98).

The thorough examination is similar to the MOT test for your car or van. The check examines the forklift truck equipment including the safety-critical parts which are carried out at specific intervals. The process consists of a visual examination and functional checks, measurements of wear, and in some cases load testing.

The findings will then be put into a full written report of the forklift examination, which will go into detail about the overall ‘health’ of the truck, along with the date of the examination, the date of the next examination, and any issues that were identified that could prove hazardous. A Thorough Examination should be carried out by a competent and qualified person. Forklift regulations are in place to help make sure that daily operations are carried out safely and efficiently for everyone. Whether you require regular forklift servicing, a thorough examination or are in the need of a new forklift, contact Dawsongroup Material Handling today.