Lift Truck Training
For handling materials, there are numerous kinds of industries that use powered industrial trucks. In the recycling business, internal combustion powered forklifts are popular. Lift truck operation requires well trained operators. Training is a requirement in North America, and for a really good reason. A forklift could cause serious damage to property or personal injury if not safely used. A loaded forklift could weight three times as much as an automobile. Lift trucks are responsible for a large percentage of industrial accidents, either as the secondary or the primary source of the accident. Reports of injuries or fatalities involving operators or pedestrians are all very commonplace.
Training Requirement
Employers must develop and apply a training program for operators based on four factors: the general principles of safe truck operation, the kinds of vehicles being used within the workplace, the specific hazards of the workplace and the general safety requirements, based on OSHA. Training includes both practical and formal components. At the training's completion, operators should pass an assessment showing they have the ability to properly operate a truck. OSHA also requires that operators of powered industrial trucks must be trained in certain specific subject matters that apply to operating a lift truck safely.