Operating Procedures
Operating Procedures tests the rules for moving with and without a load: where the forks sit, which way to face on a ramp, how to handle a load that blocks your view, and how to leave the truck.
Travelling with a load
Forks low - roughly 100–150 mm - load tilted back against the backrest, mast not raised. Look in the direction of travel. If the load blocks your forward view, travel in reverse, unless you are on a ramp or the route makes reversing dangerous, in which case use a spotter. Keep to site speed limits and marked routes, sound the horn at blind corners, and never carry passengers or allow anyone under raised forks.
Gradients
With a load, the forks point uphill: drive forward up the ramp and reverse down it. Empty, the forks point downhill. Never turn on a ramp and never park on one - the truck is at its least stable there.
Parking and leaving
Park in a designated area, forks flat on the floor, mast tilted slightly forward, parking brake on, transmission in neutral, key off and removed, wheels chocked if a slope cannot be avoided. Never leave a truck with the forks raised or the key in the ignition.
Worked example
You are asked to move a 1.2 m high pallet through a doorway 30 m away; the load completely blocks forward vision. The procedure is to travel in reverse for that short distance at walking pace, stopping and sounding the horn at the doorway, or to use a colleague as a spotter and drive forward. Raising the load to see underneath is not an option: it raises the centre of gravity and puts the load over people's heads.
Traps
- Raising the load "to see where I'm going".
- Turning on a ramp or a slope.
- Leaving the key in the truck or the forks in the air at break time.