November 2019 – Health and Safety Managers Guide to ForkLift Truck Operations

RTITB has posted a “Health and Safety Managers Guide to Lift Truck Operations”. An incident may be caused by lack of operator training or dangerous practices but often poor management and supervision are to be blamed and hence Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 requires employers to provide adequate supervision.

The Approved Code of Practice (ACOP) L117 covers training and safe use for rider operated forklift trucks. It states that it is essential that supervisors have enough training and knowledge to recognise safe and unsafe practices and the risks involved, and how to avoid and prevent them.

Every week incidents involving materials handling equipment like forklift trucks are reported to Health and Safety Executive (HSE), who will take action for breaches of the Health and Safety at Work Act. Here are 5 tips for safe forklift truck operations:

• Read the right guidance and act up on it. Essential read include ACOP L117 which provides a blueprint for good practice alongside practical examples. Another essential read is “Lift Truck Training: advice for employers” from HSE
• A good knowledge of safe working practices is required. You should know enough to recognise right and wrong, or what is safe or unsafe
• It is essential you understand the three stages of operator training – Basic, Job Specific and Familiarisation. Keep up to date with paperwork, for example, training records, certificates, etc., to demonstrate compliance in event of an incident.
• When it comes to forklift truck operations, environmental and general safety is important. These include debris and litter, racking damage, lighting issues, obstructed doorways or stairways, obstructed emergency equipment, spilt liquids, personal protective equipment (PPE) usage, pedestrian segregation, signage, and recharging/refuelling facilities. For further information refer to HSE’s Workplace Transport Checklist
• And finally keep yourself safe and ensure you have appropriate training.

Click here to read the RTITB’s Guide.

Wallace School of Transport is a fully accredited RTITB company with over 50 years' experience. You can be trained either at your own work site or at Wallace Centre in Park Royal. If you have any questions, call Wallace Forklift Training for free on 0800 612 8948, choose option 3 or click here to email us.

September 2019 - Effects of No Deal Brexit on the Transport Industry- Worst Case Scenario

Recently the Government published a Yellow Hammer report on the worst case scenario in case of No Deal Brexit. The report lists some of the key issues Wallace School of Transport’s corporate clients are likely to face including:

• 50-85% of HGV’s travelling via the short Channel Straits may not be ready for French customs
• Lack of trader readiness combined with limited space in French ports to hold “unready” HGVs could reduce the flow rate to 40-60% of current levels
• The worst disruption might last up to three months before it improves by a significant level to around 50-70%
• The disruption would cause significant queues in Kent
• In the worst case scenario, HGVs could face delays of 1.5 – 2.5 days before being able to cross the border. There could be queues of up to 8,000 trucks. Currently, vehicles wait at the port for around two minutes.
• HGVs that are caught up in the congestion in the UK will be delayed in returning to pick up another load and some companies may not be willing to transports goods to UK
• Temperature controlled products would face particular issues, especially medicines
• Transporting fresh food could also be a major issue
• Regional traffic disruption “could affect fuel distribution” within the local area, “particularly if traffic queues in Kent block the Dartford crossing, which would disrupt fuel supply in London and the south-east.
• Road Haulage Association (RHA) managing director for policy and public affairs, Rod McKenzie, said the cited delays would be “crippling” to sections of industry
• Manuel Cortes, general secretary of the transport and travel workers’ union TSSA, echoed his call, suggesting that the Transport Secretary Mr Grant Shapps, and the government were “either in a state of utter panic or unwilling to face the reality of a no deal Brexit on our transport sector”.
• The government has also announced additional funding for the Operation Brock contingency plan to tackle congestion in Kent, which will contribute towards setting up Manston airport as a lorry holding facility, implementing border readiness
• The Department for Transport has taken fresh action to help hauliers prepare for Brexit with the launch of a multi-million pound awareness campaign on 9 September. The project will set up 150 “pop-up advice centres” in ten countries, with messaging supported by an advertising campaign on billboards and media. Hauliers will also be provided with a handbook and pocket guide with details of how they can prepare, in order to assure continued free travel. The pocket book is available in electronic form on the government website, in several languages.

Ruth Wallace of Wallace School of Transport hopes that a Brexit deal is agreed soon so that we all know where we stand, ending years of uncertainty.

Wallace School of Transport is a fully accredited RTITB company with over 50 years' experience. You can be trained either at your own work site or at Wallace Centre in Park Royal. If you have any questions, call Wallace Forklift Training for free on 0800 612 8948, choose option 3 or click here to email us.

July 2019 - Fatal Forklift Truck Accident Reported by Health and Safety Executive (HSE)

Minteq UK Ltd (trading as Specialty Minerals), a manufacturer of Calcium Carbonate products in Birmingham was sentenced on 19^th July 2019 after a worker suffered fatal injuries when struck by a forklift truck.

On 24^th July 2017, Christine Workman was struck by a forklift truck whist walking in the designated pedestrian area of the site’s roadway. She sadly suffered severe crash injuries and died on 8^th August 2017.

An investigation by the HSE found the measures in place to separate and segregate pedestrians from vehicles were inadequate, with the designated pedestrian walkway running, unprotected, down the centre of the roadway used by vehicles.  Minteq UK Ltd pleaded guilty to breaching Sections 2(1) and 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work  Etc. Act 1974 and has been fined £200,000 and ordered to pay costs of £23,217.87.

 Speaking after the case, HSE inspector Kay Brookes commented:

“Far too many people are killed and seriously injured by vehicles in the workplace every year. Provisional data for 2018-19 shows that of the 147 workers fatally injured, 30 of them were as a result of being struck by a moving vehicle. Many hundreds are left with life-changing injuries. The requirement to ensure adequate separation and segregation between pedestrians and vehicles is paramount. This tragic and wholly avoidable incident highlights the need for companies to comply with their legal duty to identify what can kill and seriously hurt people in their workplace and take steps to stop that happening.”

Ruth Wallace of Wallace School of Transport says that Forklift Training by an RTITB NORS accredited training provider reduces the risk of accidents and is a must for all forklift drivers. It is a small cost compared to the liabilities a company would incur in an event of an accident.

Wallace School of Transport is a fully accredited RTITB company with over 50 years' experience. You can be trained either at your own work site or at Wallace Centre in Park Royal. If you have any questions, call Wallace Forklift Training for free on 0800 612 8948, choose option 3 or click here to email us.

May 2019 - Skills Shortage Highlighted by Hays Survey

Hays, the recruitment experts have published a major survey on trends in industry regarding the business activity for the year ahead. The survey found that despite ongoing economic and political uncertainty, the employers are optimistic about their business activity for the next 2 to 5 years, but are already citing skills shortage as a threat to future growth.

Employers have responded to the skills shortage challenges by increasing salaries by 1.9% this year. However, competitive salary is no longer enough on its own to attract staff. While salary remains the top motivator of employee movement, professionals are also willing to move for career progression opportunities and a better work-life balance.

There have been a number of reports of HGV / LGV lorry driver shortage in UK. Some reports list the shortage at between 45,000 to 60,000. Wallace School of Transport has been training lorry drivers for over 50 years. Therefore if you want to improve your job prospects and are interested in being a lorry driver, bus and coach driver or a forklift driver, contact Wallace School of Transport. We are DVSA / RTITB and NORS accredited. 

If you have any questions, call Wallace School of Transport for free on 0800 612 8948, choose option 3 or click here to email us.

March 2019 - Interested in Entering a Forklift Operator Challenge?

Talent in Logistics with UniCarriers UK will host the first ever live Forklift Operator Challenge at IMHX exhibition from 24^th to 27^th September 2019. IMHX exhibition is at NEC, Birmingham and is UK's largest logistics event. It attracts over 16,000 visitors with 400 plus exhibitors. 

Ruth Edwards, Business Manager at Talent in Logistics says "Forklift operators have a challenging role and don't tend to get highly recognised for their hard work, which is why we want to celebrate these individuals and encourage them to continue their efforts".

Forklift drivers will go head-to-head with a skilled opponent and will have to demonstrate a high level of skill and accuracy. Entrants must be qualified counterbalance lift operators and will need to provide proof in order to compete. UniCarriers will provide each entrant with a truck familiarisation session before they compete, so they have every chance of performing at their best.

January 2019 - Forklift Safety – Six Tried and Tested Ways

The Forklift Truck Association (FLTA) recently highlighted six tried and tested ways to transform your site’s safety. Here is a brief summary:

How-to Videos – To keep fresh the fine details of what the forklift drivers had learned in their training, the Heineken’s Hereford Cider Mills created more than 40 videos on how every forklift task should be performed. The videos were taken on mobile phones and costs less than £100 to implement and they were easily accessible via inexpensive tablets.

Play the Name Game – A forklift truck may cost the same as an expensive car but are generally not looked after well. Dents and damage are a common site even on a relatively new forklift truck. At Heineken’s Hereford  Cider Mills, each forklift truck was named and assigned to a team of employees to take ownership of its care. A cleaning station with vacuum cleaners, touch-up paint and cleaning products was set up. Regular competitions were held with rewards for best forklift truck. This resulted in 94% reduction in damage costs.

Pull no Punches – Training to make all staff, including pedestrians working alongside forklift trucks aware of real dangers and thus reducing injury risks. The training programme featured photos of real-life accidents and injuries.

Show Your Hand – Miscommunications plays a significant role in forklift truck accidents and hence FLTA’s safety partner Mentor devised a new campaign “Show Your Hand” using hand signals to communicate clearly even in a busy and noisy environment. As it is non-verbal, it works effectively across language barriers.

Get your Safety Site Essentials – This free on-line course for FLTA members covers the safety basics for anyone overseeing forklift truck operations and includes the standards and working practices that should be adhered to and training and safety awareness for operators.

Stay Informed – Membership of FLTA’s Safe User Group keeps managers and supervisors up to date with best practices and changes in legislation.

Click here for more information

Click here to view previous Wallace Forklift Training blogs

Wallace School of Transport is a fully accredited RTITB company and therefore rest assured that you will receive the best possible forklift training at an affordable cost. If you have any questions, call Wallace Forklift Training for free on 0800 612 8948, choose option 3 or click here to email us.