Important advice on how to avoid Pallet Truck & Handling Equipment Injuries and/or Accidents

The manouevering of palletised loads is central to any warehouse or operational setting. Correct training for all operatives on how to use this type of machinery is vital to ensure the occurrence of accidents and/or injuries are minimised.

As an employer, the worst thing you can do is to not have regular maintenance, repairs, or servicing of your pallet trucks and other handling equipment to ensure they function correctly and safely. It is also vital that you ensure that anyone who is to operate this type of machinery is fully trained and competent in the handling of such machinery.

In any warehouse or operational setting, the most commonly used handling and lifting equipment are pallet (pump) trucks, stackers, highlift trucks, platform lifters, tow trucks, and scissor lift tables. These robust pieces of apparatus can ensure your business runs more smoothy and is much more efficient, but if any of these are used incorrectly, it can lead to serious accidents or injuries.

Whilst you might not have a setting that has the need for a forklift truck, a pallet / pump truck, along with other heavy duty handling equipment, can, if not used as per your health and safety training, lead to injuries or accidents. Incorrect use can lead to acute injury to the operator and others working nearby. Furthermore, incorrect use, or over-loaded pallet trucks, can cause chronic injuries over time, such as musculoskeletal disorders, which can be serious.

Musculoskeletal disorders are a group of conditions which affect the body’s muscles, bones, joints, and connective tissues. There are over 150 types of MSDs, and these can range from mild to serious. Mild disorders can cause pain, such as discomfort, aches, or inflammation, but incorrect use of any type of warehouse equipment has the potential to lead to permanent disabilities; such as arthritis, spondyloarthritis, osteoporosis, muscular dystrophy, and other degenerative illnesses. These conditions can develop either from not being trained correctly, incorrect use of equipment, overloading of your handling equipment, or from your working environment. However, the good new is, if you follow your training knowledge, and keep your equipment regularly maintained and serviced, the risk of injury and/or accident is greatly reduced.

Each employer has the responsibility to maintain the wellbeing of all staff, so proper training should be given to each employee who operates warehouse or operational equipment.

Health, Safety & Environment studies clearly indicate that roughly one third of injuries which occur in the workplace are due to mismanagement of operational machinery, resulting in employees having to take on average, 15.5 days per incident off of work, per annum.

Incorrect use of warehouse handling equipment, such as pushing (which should never, ever be undertaken), pulling, and the lifting and lowering of excessively heavy loads has shown to lead to, on average, 15.5 days off work per employee per annum. This is easily avoidable down-time for your business to be fully efficient and profitable.

However, as long as the load on, for instance, a pallet truck, is not overweight, does not over-hang, is correctly packaged and loaded centrally with the back of the load against the back of the pallet jack, and with correct manoeuvering, this greatly minimalises the risk of injury or accident. A model with a weigh scale, or weigh beams are both very good ideas for checking your trucks are not overloaded.

Injuries or accidents can be largely avoided by adhering to a few stringent rules:

• Employers should always make sure that anyone who operates a pallet truck, or indeed any form of handling equipment, receives the correct safety training. These pieces of equipment may seem relatively easy to operate, but everyone who uses heavy handling equipment, such as a pallet truck or a stacker, needs to be aware of the hazards of incorrect usage.

• It is vital that correct training for operatives should include, as a bare minimum, an examination of the equipment before each use to ensure the truck, stacker, highlifter, etc., is in good working condition, that the equipment or load is not damaged, and that the load is secure, before attempting to manoeuvre the equipment.

• Do not rush whilst pushing the truck (never, ever pull it!). The majority of pallet trucks do not have a brake, so will require the strength of the operator to bring it to a stop. Never attempt to go too fast, as this will make stopping much harder, and could injure the operator, others around them, or damage the truck or load.

• Operatives must be aware of the size and weight of any given load. If you do not have pallet trucks with a weigh scale, operatives should be trained to have an excellent idea of the weight so that a truck is never overloaded. Weigh beams can help immensely in these instances, or by having weighscale pump trucks to do the job for you.

• Operatives must never load goods on to pallet trucks on an incline or ramp. A truck must be on a flat and secure surface whilst it is being loaded. Attempting to load on a ramp/incline can be extremely hazardous, and should therefore be absolutely avoided.

• It is important to remember to wear the correct PPE whilst operating heavy machinery, and this includes pallet trucks. An example is – Steel toe-capped boots are the very basic of PPE requirements in warehouse or operational settings.

• This seems like a pretty obvious rule, but yet breaking it does happen unfortunately – An operator should NEVER ride a pallet truck like it’s a scooter, as this totally disregards health and safety regulations, and can be extremely dangerous.

• As an employer, to avoid accidents or injuries, it is your responsibility and duty to ensure all handling equipment is in good working order, is safe, is well maintained and regularly serviced, and that all operatives who are using handling equipment are properly trained to use the equipment correctly. Regular updating of an operative’s training is good practice in order to ensure employees remember how to use pallet trucks and indeed all handling equipment, safely. If you, as an employer, fail to comply with Health & Safety training, and constant monitoring and implementing of it, it can lead to extremely large fines, and/or severe injuries or accidents, of which you would be held totally accountable by law.

If you have any questions regarding the correct use of pallet trucks and warehouse handling equipment, the training of your staff, and PUWER98 and LOLER compliance, you are more than welcome to contact our friendly technical team on 0333 772 7726, or email us info@go-ept.com and we will be happy to advise.

Here at Go-EPT we stock a huge range of warehouse handling equipment, and a vast range of spare parts for all models we stock, at the very best prices.

Whether you need a manual pallet truck, an electric pump model, a semi-electric pallet jack, a stacker, a highlifter, a platform lifter, a scissor lift table, a tow truck, any other type of handling equipment, or spare parts for your trucks, we cater for all your warehouse and operational requirements.

We also offer a fully comprehensive Servicing & Repairs Service.

Whether you need a service or repair for one truck or a whole fleet, we are able to cater for all of your needs. To view our Servicing or Repairs services, please click here.

Please contact our friendly sales or service team for the very best prices for your pallet truck and handling equipment needs, or if you’d like to book a service or repair. With over 25 years experience, we are confident we are able to fulfil your every need.

You can contact us by clicking here.