OSHA requires that each "Powered Industrial Truck" is checked out before it is put into operation. Most companies use a "Daily Checklist" to inspect their equipment. A typical operator checklist includes a visual walk around the machine. While the list is commonly referred to as a "Daily Checklist," each operator should make sure they check out the machine before each shift for their own peace of mind and the safety of their co-workers. This is to check for everything from leaks, to tire condition, to the condition of the safety equipment (load backrest, overhead guard, etc.).

The checklist should include an operational check of the horn, brakes (parking and service brakes), steering, and all other functions (including any attachments). It also is mandatory that any accessories that have been added--such as back-up alarms, headlights, brake lights, and/or strobe lights--also must work. Quite often, operators will disable strobe lights and/or back-up alarms by cutting the wires, or muffle the back-up alarm by stuffing a rag in it or taping over it. This creates a safety issue and a possible OSHA violation. Remember, a good rule of thumb is: "If it has it, it has to work."

While back-up alarms, flashing lights and headlights are not an OSHA requirement for most applications, you should always consult with your insurance company and/or a risk assessment company to find out which accessories your equipment should have for your specific application. Checklists are available from Thompson and Johnson Equipment Co. You can see an example of an Operator Daily Checklist here. You can see an example of an Internal Combustion Daily Checklist here. We carry Toyota, Crown and Clark checklists for internal combustion or electric forklift trucks.

The Correct Way to Install Electrical Forklift Accessories

When installing accessories like back-up alarms, strobe lights, operator fans, scanners, horns, relay, etc., it is very important that you refer to the forklift's schematic in order to determine the correct way to wire and operate the accessory components. The reason this is so important is because of the technology that is now used on the modern day forklift, even your electric-powered pallet truck. These forklifts are using state-of-the-art motor controls and components that are very susceptible to electrical noise and spike.

The protection devices that are sometimes used by the manufacturers are called filters, suppressors, diode blocks or metal oxide varisters, to name a few. These components are used to protect the truck from the accessory and/or protect the accessory from the truck. When these protection devices are not used, the life of the accessory component can be shortened or worse, a major component on the truck could be damaged due to the electrical spikes or noise. At the very least, you could have a truck that intermittently acts up and malfunctions in some way.

The risk that you take can be very costly when one of these are not used. If you do not feel comfortable installing one of these accessories, please consider having a qualified forklift technician install it for you.

Toyota Electric Pallet Truck For Confined and Congested Areas

After extensive testing by the United States Auto Club, Inc. Toyota Material Handling's 5,000-pound capacity 7-Series Lift Truck was named "Most Fuel Efficient" and "Most Productive."

The Toyota dramatically outperformed its competition by as much as 25% in FUEL EFFICIENCY and almost 10% in PRODUCTIVITY in the USAC evaluation against six major competitors' models.

These results concluded that not only will a Toyota user spend less money on fuel, they also will complete more work per shift, thanks to Toyota's superior productivity and performance results, potentially saving customers thousands of dollars annually.

Please contact your local Thompson and Johnson Representative for additional information on this exciting news!