Material Handling Equipment can Reduce Forklift-Accident Related Injuries,
Damage, and Costs
Eliminate lift truck damage with smart design, processes, and equipment
In a
warehouse, collisions are costly--they can even be deadly.
How deadly?
Lift truck accidents account for only about 1% of industrial accidents, but
they produce a shocking 10% of the physical injuries. Lift trucks cause
nearly 10,000 injuries a year. Typically, lift truck industries cost
American companies over $135 million a year
1998 OSHA training standards attempt to rectify the disproportionate
number of injuries and damage lift trucks cause with training. Cisco-Eagle
agrees that better operator training will help, but there are other ways to
reduce the potential for injuries, death, and damage.
Forklifts and
foot traffic shouldn't mingle if they don't have to, and with the right
warehouse design, equipment and processes, lighting, and environmental
factors, you can significantly reduce the chances for a lift truck and a
person to cross paths, or for a lift truck to run into a building column, a
rack upright, equipment, or stored inventory.
Visibility
& Noise: simple, but often overlooked
Warehouses
that are too dark can cause injuries. This simple improvement can reduce the
chances that an operator won't see people or objects in his traffic aisles.
It seems simple, but the fact remains that a well-lit, clean warehouse
environment within the acceptable level for general operations will reduce
accidents. Consider enhancements items like
Safety & Visibility Mirrors to improve floor visibility. They're
inexpensive and can be mounted on ceilings, rack uprights, and other
equipment to increase the chance that operators will see what's in their
path--or around the other side of that row of
Pallet Racks.
 When
forklifts enter and leave controlled areas, consider using
Vinyl Strip Doors at door-points to control the environment while
allowing easy access and good visibility. The forklift driver can see
activities on the other side of the door, and people working on the other
side can see the forklift coming.
A noisy
facility increases danger, since workers have less of a chance of hearing
the warning noise or a forklift's engine. Certainly, there are many
operations that must take place in louder environments, but machinery can be
muffled to be quieter, and processes to be certain people know a forklift is
in operation can be created. Certain
Conveyors
and systems, such as
EZ-Logic Accumulation Systems, operate much quieter than typical
systems, for instance.
Create
Traffic Islands and Traffic Aisles that separate people and industrial
traffic
One of the
easiest ways to prevent forklift collisions is by creating areas where
forklifts are supposed to be--and where people aren't.
You can
"hard" segment these aisles with hardware such as
Steel Guard Rails. Tape markings also work, but they aren't obtrusive,
keeping the lift truck on its side and the pedestrians on their side. It is
hard to ignore bright-yellow, painted steel barriers. It's easy to ignore
tape on the floor; one person, be he a forklift driver or a pedestrian, can
easily miss those lines, or ignore them through inattention. While it isn't
always possible to erect solid barriers, but when you can, it's much more
effective.
Traffic
Islands work even better. It's simply a matter of defining where forklifts
aren't supposed to be and erecting barriers to stop them from being there.
Barriers surrounding workstations, assembly points, in-plant offices, and
other "people" areas are also recommended. Simply erecting inexpensive
guardrails around a packing station, computer terminal, assembly station, or
pick-point can instantly remove the potential for an errant lift truck
colliding with personnel.
 Reducing
the Damage to Facilities, Equipment and Inventory
When a
collision does occur, you can reduce the cost of that accident by utilizing
material handling equipment to protect conveyors, rack uprights,
workstations, and building columns.
Building
columns are a problem since damaging them can be particularly expensive and
dangerous. Utilizing
Column Protectors enhances the visibility of the column and protects it
in case of an accident. Column protectors disperse impact forces, protecting
the lift truck as well as the building column.
Bollards can
protect dock doors and other equipment by erecting a solid steel vertical
barrier that protects a limited amount of space.
 You
should also protect your pallet racks. Damage to them can cause dangerous
rack failure. Once again, simple Steel Guard Rails work great to run across
the end of a row of racks and create a forklift barrier. For the upright
columns themselves, using simple
steel column protectors, or
impact-absorbing rack column cushion guards can alleviate significant
risks.
Training,
design, equipment, and processes can all add up to helping you reduce the
potential for serious injuries, protect your people, protect your buildings,
lift drivers, equipment, and inventory. Want more information?
We'd be happy
to discuss any of these methods with you, or to consult on your situation.
Call Customer Service at 888-877-3861, or e-mail
24hours@cisco-eagle.com |
