Safety Equipment

The range of incidents are tip-overs, falling loads, striking racking and other plant or structures during loading and unloading and, worst of all, collisions with people. There have been too many deaths and serious injuries caused to workers near forklifts and pedestrians passing through areas where forklifts are operating. Forklifts, or “industrial lift trucks” as they are technically known, are classified in Australia as high risk plant which says a lot about how dangerous they can be. They must only be operated by those who have been trained by an approved workplace safety trainer and have then obtained a forklift licence issued by the local OHS regulator. Separating pedestrians from forklifts in a workplace is the simple solution to the problems of operators driving into or backing into workers. In this case every workplace is different and may require advice from plant suppliers, materials handling experts or workplace designers on how best to keep forklifts and pedestrians apart. In some workplaces interaction with forklifts and workers may be necessary because of the nature of the various tasks or dictated by a restricted layout of the workplace. Workers on foot might be doing tasks e.g. order-picking alongside forklifts in a dispatch area. Other workers may be unloading and loading items that cannot be handled by forklifts. Safety Barriers – the Ideal Solution The ideal solution is to physically separate forklifts from pedestrians. Forklift-only areas can be set up by installing industrial strength safety barriers, safety railings or safety guard rails. Warehouse guard rails and bollards are readily available for transport and storage situations. Physical barriers may not be possible or practical in some workplaces where forklifts and workers occupy the same space or where workers or forklifts have to transit through different work areas. In these situations, pathways and work zones can be designated for forklifts and workers only. Installation of pedestrian safety rails and barriers will assist in protecting workers. But this relies on signage and workers and operators following procedures and keeping a watch out for those who flaunt the rules. Safety laws do refer to safe operations of industrial lift trucks but this is limited to mandating the fitting of warning devices. The law makes no mention of segregation. But since a forklift is categorised as “plant” employers are required to identify and manage any risk at their workplace from any type of plant.