Forklift Maintenance: Tips & OSHA Requirements

News ,

OSHA requires that all forklift operators undergo safety training, which must be renewed every three years. While employers are responsible for ensuring their employees are trained on the specific equipment they use on the job, a general safety training course prior to operating any forklifts is a requirement. KMH provides you with training classes as well as regular maintenance services for your fleet. Staying ahead of the game on safety keeps you running, saves you thousands of dollars in repairs and complies with all the requirements of law you need to stay in business.

Your forklifts need to be regularly serviced; there is no substitute for good maintenance. It ensures forklifts can perform at optimum levels, can detect and rectify minor problems before they affect productivity, and will prolong a forklifts life.

Some Initial Evaluations

  1. Past maintenance work order
  2. Hours of operation
  3. Severity of service
  4. Susceptibility to wear, damage and getting out of adjustment
  5. Service record

It is also helpful to conduct interviews with maintenance personal and operating supervisors who are familiar with the equipment on a daily basis.

Forklift Maintenance

Maintenance Schedule

Your maintenance schedule should specify tasks to be performed daily, monthly, quarterly, semi-annually and annually.

Adherence to your maintenance program will help keep your forklift in good condition, prolong its useful life and minimize downtime and costs associated with major repairs.

Daily Maintenance

Forklift operators should perform daily maintenance at the beginning of each shift. They can visually inspect for leaks, obvious damage, and tire condition, the operation of safety lights, service, parking brakes, horn, and steering. They can then check the mast operation by raising and lowering the forks both with and without a load, and finally check the levels of engine oil, fuel, radiator water and hydraulic fluid. Items to be aware of are:

  1. Lubrication of chassis and mast components
  2. Replacement of engine oil
  3. Cleaning of the air filter element
  4. Adjustment of engine idle speed and ignition timing on engine powered trucks
  5. Inspection of lift and tilt cylinder operation, drive belt tension, and for engine powered trucks, spark plugs, distributor point, cap and rotor

Maintenance Tips

Simply tasks that will keep costs and downtime to a minimum you can enforce on site are easy steps everyone can take to keep the fleet rolling. Some ideas to begin with are:

  1. Keep forklifts clean so it is easier to detect worn or defective parts. Clean with water, not flammable liquids
  2. Use only a trained, qualified person to inspect, maintain or repair forklifts
  3. Use only licensed gas fitters to repair and/or replace parts on LPG forklifts
  4. Establish a procedure for dealing with unsafe or damaged forklifts, including tagging the vehicle and reporting the problem to the appropriate person
  5. Keep all moving parts well lubricated
  6. Keep your forklift charged or fueled
  7. Ensure forklift gauges are functioning properly at all times

For a multiple point inspection and regular maintenance program for your team, KMH offers a ready fleet of techs that can come to you on a regular basis and keep your fleet and team up to speed with your company’s goals.

To learn more how we can work with you so you can focus on your production and products while we keep you going, call: 888-564-7978 or fill-out our request form below: