Trucks and pedestrians don't mix

Each year, upwards of 700 workers in the manufacturing sector are involved in serious accidents featuring a forklift truck. Most are hit by moving vehicles; others are involved in run-ins with moving machinery, are hit by falling objects or are the victims of a slip and trip incident. The bald figures are bad enough but, as is the way with statistics, to most of us they are merely numbers. So we asked the experts at the Health and Safety Executive to put some of these stats into perspective and explain how they happen – and, crucially, how they can best be avoided – in the industrial environment. Do these accidents happen at companies which exhibit a casual disregard for workplace safety? Are these sites which have very poor – or even non-existent – safety regimes? Do their drivers blatantly ignore safety procedures? Not a bit of it. Most of these accidents take place at sites where a good safety culture is in place. Usually, it is only a momentary lapse that causes the particular operation to become another statistic. Sadly, it is often a gesture of help from one colleague to another that leads to the incident – trucks and pedestrians don't mix. This point is highlighted by HSE specialist inspector John Moutrie. A mechanical engineer, Moutrie has spent most of his career in industry, and moved to HSE five years ago to support investigations and where he has been the HSE's technical lead for forklift trucks. Moutrie stresses that segregation of trucks and pedestrians is a point that is often overlooked by organisations – even those with otherwise stringent safety standards – and it's a message that HSE wants to get across. "About 50% of the fatalities and major injuries are caused by collision. In everyday life, we're all used to seeing vehicles on roads and pedestrians on pavements, but we don't translate that into the industrial environment. Even if gangways exist on sites, they are often used by trucks and by people." Perhaps surprisingly, most collisions do not happen at high speed – instead, they take place when the truck is travelling at speeds of 5mph or even less. A particular type of collision can happen when the truck starts off with the steering on full lock. Rear-wheel drive means the truck will move out to the side as it starts. "I've investigated several accidents where a person was walking past a truck, it swings out in this way and crushes them against a wall," he says. Collisions also occur when the driver leaves the forklift truck without applying the parking brake. Moutrie recounts an example: "A forklift truck was being used to unload a delivery lorry. The lorry driver fell off the load bed and, although he wasn't seriously hurt, the forklift driver inevitably wanted to help. He jumped out of his truck, didn't apply the brake and the truck rolled down and trapped the lorry driver between the load bed and the lorry. That's happened a number of times." Many of today's trucks have a sensor, which automatically activates the brake when the driver leaves his seat. Forthcoming standards will make it compulsory for all trucks to have this functionality, or to sound an alarm if the brake is not applied when the driver gets up. Another factor in serious accidents is collapse – or tip over. This accounts for 31% of the fatalities in our sector: "It's not a large number, but it does mean that there's a high chance of being killed or seriously injured if the truck tips over," explains Moutrie. Often, the driver attempts to jump out of harm's way when he feels the truck beginning to tip, and he is hit by the mast or the overhead guard. Most tip overs happen outside, where sloping or uneven ground, wet surfaces and kerbs combine to make it more tricky for the truck to negotiate a safe path. If the front wheel of the truck clips a kerb, for example, it can easily tip the vehicle over. "That said, the number of tip over accidents has reduced dramatically in the past ten years," says Moutrie, "and part of that is down to the stability systems incorporated into trucks," notably Toyota's system of activity stability and Jungheinrich's curve control. Show restraint Seatbelts play a critical – though not compulsory – role in prevention. Moutrie says there is "no doubt" that seatbelts vastly reduce or even eliminate injury. But it's only compulsory to provide a seatbelt, not to wear it. Each site has to decide whether to insist on them being worn, based on their risk assessment results. The only type of accident where the individual has usually "done something silly" he says are falls from height. They either stand on the forks to reach something, or place another object – often a pallet – on the forks and stand on that. Around 16% of fatalities and major injuries are caused by falling objects – but not, as you may think, the load falling from the forks. Instead, it is usually caused by the forks dislodging other goods or pallets, which then fall and hit someone. "Again, this is about proper segregation," Moutrie stresses. Apart from the tip over incidents, it's interesting to note that the person most often injured in any accident involving a forklift is a lorry driver. He may offer to help by opening the curtains on his vehicle, or by removing straps. But in doing so, he puts himself in serious danger by being in such close proximity to the forklift truck. This could be partly explained by the increasing pressure on lorry drivers to unload and move to the next delivery as quickly as possible, but Moutrie believes benevolence is more likely to be at the heart of this: "People are naturally helpful, but they then put themselves in a dangerous position. I've investigated accidents where there was really no need for the lorry driver to be in that area." One was helping the forklift driver by moving the post on his curtainsider to enable easy access to the pallets. As he moved the post, the load fell off the forklift truck and killed him. It's a tragic tale and an example of how a simple but ill-timed gesture can result in loss of life. Hatch a plan In an attempt to protect lorry drivers, some manufacturers have clearly-marked zones at the front of the loading or unloading bay in which the lorry driver is to remain. If he leaves the area for any reason, the forklift truck operator has to stop and wait for him to return there. An inconvenience? Possibly, but one that is surely worthwhile. Aside from the critical issue of segregation of vehicles and pedestrians, Moutrie suggests that selection of the right truck can also be a vital factor in its safe use. There are many types of forklifts, he points out, and some may be more appropriate than others for particular applications and sites. "Choose the truck carefully to match your site's requirement," he urges. Moutrie agrees that the truck manufacturers have made significant improvements to safety features. "But they can only go so far," he says. "Most accidents – perhaps 80% or more – are due to operator error or the company's system of work, rather than any problem with the equipment... There's very little that can be done to eliminate any chance of this except better training of drivers." Human error it may be, but some of them pay the ultimate price.