To be able to operate any type of lift truck, specific OSHA requirements have to be met. Some businesses offer basic awareness training to other people like visitors and office employees or sales people and other non-operators who might venture into the warehouse or yard. Though OSHA doesn't particularly deal with lift truck pedestrian training, the OSHA General Duty Clause dictates that employers should take measures so as to protect employees from some risks, such as pedestrians exposed to moving lift trucks.
A huge issue that would have to be dealt with is pedestrian safety. Based on the NIOSH or the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health; approximately 20% of all forklift accidents include a pedestrian being struck by a forklift. This statistic means around 19,000 people on a yearly basis.
In order to keep everybody safe, there are some basic steps which must be taken into consideration. This is regardless to how briefly or frequently people are around industrial trucks during their work day. Amongst the main considerations is that forklift pedestrian mishaps normally occur in situations where the pedestrian is ignorant of safety measures. Issues also occur more frequently 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 possible risk from being struck by a lift truck. Pedestrians not seeing the forklift is a common issue which needs to be dealt with. A lot operations have different degrees of intersections or blind corners which pedestrians must be aware of. At times pedestrians do not hear the forklift. Be careful of the various kinds of power sources. Like for example, electric trucks may be a lot quieter as opposed to internal combustion engines which are really loud.
Coming in too close proximity of the machinery is another common issue for pedestrians. In order for a pedestrian to be injured by a lift truck, common sense tells us that the pedestrian has to be near to be struck. For a forklift which is working, a four foot safety zone is recommended in order to make a safe perimeter for everyone. This helps to address risks like the model driving accidentally over a pedestrian's foot.
Following and implementing strict safety protocol helps to make sure that the workplace safety remains paramount and stays top notch.