Forklift Safety: A Lifesaving Guide
POWERED INDUSTRIAL TRUCK
CLASSIFICATIONS
Class 1 - Counter-balanced truck having both solid and pneumatic tires, with
an electric motor, rider occupied.
Class 2 - Solid tires, narrow aisle truck with an electric motor.
Class 3 - Hand truck or hand/rider truck with electric motor and solid tires.
Class 4 - Internal combustion engine truck with solid tires.
Class 5 - Internal combustion engine truck with pneumatic tires.
Class 6 - No forklifts fall into this class of electric and internal combustion
engine tractors with solid and pneumatic tires.
Class 7 - Forklift trucks for rough terrain with pneumatic tires.
In addition to these classifications, forklifts also have special attachments to
do specific jobs. It is extremely dangerous to use unapproved attachments
with a forklift because of the balanced nature of the machine. Using an
attachment that is not approved will upset this balance and cause the forklift
to overturn, which can result in serious injury or death. Some approved
attachments include a drum grabber, jib crane, hoist, carpet lift attachment,
and a personnel platform.
Forklifts work by counterbalancing the weight on one end of the beam, the
load which is supported by a fulcrum with the weight on the other end which is
the body of the lift and a counterweight that is built in to the design. In order to
safely determine if a forklift can carry a specific load you must figure out the
‘moment’ which it the distance from the fulcrum to the center of gravity times
the weight. This equation will give you the moment and let you know if it is
safe to carry a load. All forklifts have a capacity plate which helps the operator
determine which loads he or she may safely lift.
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