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Staying
Safe on Ramps and Inclines
Ramps or inclines in your facilities present hazards
to your forklift operators. This should be brought out
when training your forklift operators. On all sit-down
style forklifts, Class 1, 4, & 5, this could be
battery, propane, gas or diesel powered forklifts, the
loads must face upgrade.
Another class 1 truck that falls into this category
is a stand-up counterbalance forklift. This style forklift
has no outriggers on it that stick out to the sides
and doesn’t have a reach mechanism. The mast generally
lifts and tilts loads like a sit-down forklift except
you stand up in it to drive it. This type of forklift
follows the same rules as the sit-down style forklifts
on a ramp or incline. The load must face uphill.
When traveling with no load on these trucks, ascending
or descending an incline, the manufacturers of most
forklifts highly recommend that you travel with forks
facing downhill (Class 1, 4, and 5).
Another style forklift is the reach truck, or Class
2. This style of forklift has the outriggers off to
the sides and could have a reach mechanism on it. The
mast is usually fixed and the tilting occurs out at
the fork carriage. This style truck is NOT recommended
for ramp use. Its main use is hard level surfaces. If
you drive this on a ramp or incline, the outriggers
could bottom out at the top of the ramp. Another forklift
that falls into this category is the order picker or
man-up style; this should also NEVER be used on a ramp.
A Class 3 style forklift is known as a powered pallet
jack. You generally walk off to the sides when using
this type of truck to avoid injury to your foot or leg.
On a ramp, if the load is secure and you can see around
it, or if the pallet truck has no load on it, then stay
on the high side of the pallet jack and face the forks
downhill.
When walking up the incline, the operator is safely
off to the side with the pallet truck trailing behind.
When coming down the ramp, with no load or a secure
load, then have the pallet truck out in front of you.
If the operator should ever trip and fall, the pallet
truck will not roll over them.
If for some reason the load the operator is carrying
is unstable or blocks the forward view of the operator
and must face uphill, then the operator MUST stand safely
off to the side of the pallet truck and operate it with
one hand. This way, if the operator trips or falls,
the pallet truck is off to the side and not in front
of the operator.
A class 6 style truck is also known as a tow tractor.
You see many of these at airports towing luggage carts.
If these operate on a ramp or incline ascending or descending,
always have the load trailing behind the tow tractor.
More Training Tips – Some final training
tips operators should know about operating on ramps
or inclines include the following:
- NEVER turn on a ramp or incline. This
will cause the truck to tip over and serious
injury or death can occur.
- Operators should never park on a ramp or incline.
If you must, then the operator should make sure
the parking brake works, and the wheels of the
forklift should also be chocked.
- Never depend on the parking brake only to
hold on a ramp or incline a forklift that weighs
8,000 pounds or more.
- Make sure your forks are just high enough
to clear the travel surface.
- Pedestrians and forklifts should never occupy
a ramp or incline at the same time.
- If the operator of a Class 1,4, & 5 is carrying
a load that blocks their forward vision on level
surfaces, they are taught to drive in reverse.
But when approaching a ramp or incline, that
load must face uphill.
- The operator should be taught to get a spotter
to help guide them up incline. The spotter must
stand safely off to the side of the forklift
in full view of the forklift operator. The operator
of the forklift will follow the direction of
the spotter; they should establish some type
of hand signals in case it is loud or noisy
in the work area. The spotter will wave away
any pedestrians who are in the way, and will
also insure that the operator doesn’t get too
close to the edge of the ramp or incline. Once
the forklift gets to the top of the ramp, the
operator can safely turn the forklift around
and travel in reverse again. If, for some reason,
the load has to face forward on a level surface,
use a spotter to get the load safely to where
it belongs.
- All forklifts on a ramp should be driven slowly
until they get to level ground.
- Ramps and inclines are a hazard in your facility.
Great care should be taken when traveling on
them. Proper training should be in place for
operations in these types of areas. Always check
with the operator’s manual of any forklift for
specific instructions when operating on a ramp
or incline.
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For training information or questions, please call
Dave Bennett @ 315-437-2881 x 4146.
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