To be able to utilize any kind of lift truck, certain OSHA requirements need to be met. Several businesses offer basic awareness training to other individuals like visitors and office employees or sales people and other non-operators who might venture into the yard or warehouse. Even if OSHA doesn't specifically deal with forklift pedestrian training, the OSHA General Duty Clause dictates that employers have to take measures so as to protect employees from certain risks, like for example pedestrians exposed to moving lift trucks.
A big issue which will have to be dealt with is pedestrian safety. According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health or NIOSH; around 20% of all forklift mishaps comprise a pedestrian being struck by a forklift. This statistic translates to approximately 19,000 individuals every year.
So as to keep everyone safe, there are several basic steps which should be taken into consideration. This is regardless to how briefly or frequently people are around industrial trucks during their work day. One of the major factors is that lift truck pedestrian mishaps normally occur in cases where the pedestrian is not aware of safety precautions. Problems also happen more often when the pedestrian has become used to frequent interaction with forklifts and ends up complacent.
In order to avoid putting yourself at potential risk of being struck by a lift truck, there are several common situations to look out for. Amongst the most common problems is when pedestrians did not see the lift truck. Numerous operations have varying degrees of intersections or blind corners which pedestrians should know. Sometimes pedestrians do not hear the forklift. Be careful of the different types of power sources. Like for instance, electric trucks may be much quieter as opposed to IC engines that are really loud.
Coming in too close proximity of the machine is another common problem for pedestrians. In order for a pedestrian to be injured by a forklift, common sense tells us that the pedestrian has to be in close proximity to be struck. For a forklift which is running, a four foot safety zone is recommended so as to make a safe perimeter for everybody. This really helps to address risks like for example the unit driving accidentally over a pedestrian's foot.
Following and implementing strict safety protocol helps to make sure that the workplace safety stays top notch and remains paramount.