When it comes to maintaining the forklift, it can really be easy to overlook the simple yet essential tire. If you pick the wrong tire, you could end up accidentally with a huge increase in fleet operating costs, or increased safety risks, which is worse yet. If however, you select correct type of tire you can enjoy substantial cost-savings, improved safety and an overall more efficient operation. A correctly selected tire can really reduce the downtime for replacement and potentially last 40 percent longer.
The forklift tire is a quite complex component of the machinery. It is therefore, easy to select the wrong one accidentally. There are numerous different brands of tires and types, with a huge range of treads and compounds. This means you must be totally prepared with the correct data when you are going shopping for tires so that you could select some durable and safe alternatives to help prolong the life of your lift truck.
The particular type of tire chosen for a forklift depends on the type of surface you would be utilizing the machinery on. For instance, smoother surfaces and indoor applications usually utilize tires that are made from rubber and that are smaller in size. On the contrary, outdoor operations need pneumatic tires. Pneumatic tires are filled with compressed air and have a rubber tread. These features give them a great grip on uneven and rough surfaces.
Lift Truck Tire Safety
Each and every year, 200 individuals are killed in forklift or lift truck related accidents each year. Ensuring forklift safety, like proper inspection practices, can all contribute in to preventing these dangerous and horrible accidents from taking place.
Pre-Work Inspection
Before every shift, the forklift's tires have to be inspected. Ideally, they must have the right air pressure, as set forth by the maker. This is really essential because if the tire pressure is very low, the machinery can inadvertently tip over when a load is being raised.
Kinds
For indoor work, forklifts that have solid tires made out of rubber are the best alternative.
Other Considerations
The OHSA or Occupational Health and Safety Administration require that forklifts utilized on a continual basis need to be inspected at the completion of every shift. The driver must check the equipment for any mechanical problems and the tires should be checked for cuts, excessive wear or obvious tire damage. Any issues that are detected have to be addressed as soon as possible to maintain safety.