ASHLAND UNIVERSITY

POWERED INDUSTRIAL TRUCKS

JANUARY, 2006

A powered industrial truck is defined as a mobile, power-propelled truck used to carry, push, pull, lift, stack, or tier materials. Powered industrial trucks are also commonly known as forklifts, pallet trucks, fork trucks, or lift trucks. Each year, tens of thousands of forklift-related injuries occur in the U.S. workplaces. A majority of employee injuries and property damage can be attributed to lack of procedures, insufficient or inadequate training, and lack of safety-rule enforcement.

Identify your operators

If an employee has other duties, but sometimes operates a powered industrial truck, training must be provided.

Methods of Training

Training must consist of a combination of formal instruction and practical training. Using both methods is the only way to ensure that the trainee receives and comprehends the instruction and uses the information to safely operate a powered industrial truck. The formal training need not take place in a classroom. Discussions can consist of the trainer talking to the trainee and explaining the training material, either in the workplace or in another location. The training must, however, include an explanatory element as a practical element.

Formal instruction may include lectures, conferences, classroom discussions, demonstrations, and written or oral tests. To enhance the training and make it more understandable to the employee, employers and other trainers may use movies, slides, computers, video tapes and other visual presentations.

While some employees can learn instructional material while seated in a classroom, other employees may learn best by observing an operation (demonstration) and/or by personally performing an operation (practical exercise). In most cases, a combination of different training methods provides the best training in the least amount of time.

Training Program Content

1. Characteristics of the powered industrial truck the employee will be allowed to operate:
   1. Differences from the automobile.
   2. Controls and instrumentation: location, what they do, and how they work.
   3. Engine or motor operation.
   4. Steering and maneuvering.
   5. Visibility
   6. Fork and/or attachment adaptation, operation, and limitations of their use.
   7. Vehicle capacity and vehicle stability.
   8. Vehicle inspection and maintenance the operator will be required to perform.
   9. Refueling or charging and recharging batteries.
   10. Operating limitations.
   11. Any other operating instruction, warning, or precaution listed in the operator's manual for the type of vehicle the employee is being trained to operate.

2. The operating environment
   1. Floor surfaces and/or ground conditions where the vehicle will be operated.
   2. Composition of probable loads and load stability.
   3. Load manipulation, stacking, unstacking.
   4. Pedestrian traffic.
   5. Narrow aisle and restricted place operation, operating in hazardous locations.
   6. Operating the truck on ramps and other sloped surfaces that would affect the stability of the vehicle.
   7. Other unique or potentially hazardous environmental conditions that exist or may exist in the workplace.

Employee Evaluation

When the employee completes the training exercises and prior to operating the truck in the workplace, an evaluation of the employee must be performed. This evaluation will determine the adequacy of training and the ability of the employee to perform truck operations safely in the workplace. The OSHA standard requires that an evaluation of the operator's performance be conducted at least once every three years and after refresher training. A certification of training record containing the name of the operator, the date of the training, the date of the evaluation, and the identity of the person(s) performing the training or evaluation.