Free training deck
Updated · About 50 minutes
Forklift safety training presentation
Forklift safety training teaches the people who drive powered industrial trucks, and the people who work near them, the rules that keep loads up and pedestrians clear. This free deck is the formal-instruction part of that training, in about 50 minutes. Its 20 editable slides cover what OSHA 29 CFR 1910.178 requires of operator training and evaluation, stability and the load center, travelling, people around the truck, loads, docks and trailers, parking, fuel and batteries, the daily examination, an illustrative worked example, a floor-walk activity and four check questions with answers. Every rule carries its paragraph reference and every slide has speaker notes. It supports, and does not replace, the practical training and workplace evaluation your employer must give each operator.
Free to use: print it, copy it and edit it for your team. Enter your name and work email once to download.
The title Forklift safety, drive and work around trucks safely, on a navy background with the LeanSuite logo.A look inside
What is in the 20 slides
For forklift operators, trainees, plant and warehouse supervisors, and people who walk in truck areas. Widescreen, in plain language, with speaker notes on every slide.
Slide 11: Travelling: rules that prevent collisions 
Slide 9: Example: a long load and the data plate 
Slide 17: Try it: a 20-minute floor walk
- 1Forklift safety: drive and work around trucks safelyCover
- 2AgendaWhat OSHA 29 CFR 1910.178 requires · Stability and load capacity · Travelling, people around the truck, loads and docks · Daily exam, parking, fuel and batteries · Example, floor walk and check questions
- 3What the standard coversIn US general industry, 29 CFR 1910.178 is the rule for powered industrial trucks.
- 4What this deck is, and is notIt is formal instruction. It is not a license to drive.
- 5Who may drive: the training rules1910.178(l) comes down to training, evaluation and a record.
- 6What operator training must cover1910.178(l)(3) lists the topics, unless the employer can show one does not apply.
- 7When refresher training is due1910.178(l)(4)(ii): refresher training is required in the relevant topics when:
- 8Stability and the load centerA counterbalanced truck rests on three points, so its stability can be drawn as a triangle, 1910.178 Appendix A, A-4.
- 9Example: a long load and the data plateIllustrative numbers, using the method in OSHA's Appendix A, A-5.3.
- 10The daily examination1910.178(q)(7): examine every truck before it goes into service.
- 11Travelling: rules that prevent collisions1910.178(n): speed (n)(1) and (n)(8), vision (n)(4) and (n)(6), grades (n)(7), turns and floors (n)(9), (n)(10) and (n)(15).
- 12People around the truckDo not drive toward anyone standing in front of a bench or other fixed object, 1910.178(m)(1).
- 13Loads and liftingHandle only stable or safely arranged loads within the truck's rated capacity, 1910.178(o)(1) and (o)(2).
- 14Docks, trailers and rampsKeep a safe distance from the edge of ramps and platforms on an elevated dock, 1910.178(m)(6).
- 15Parking and leaving the truck1910.178(m)(5): a truck is unattended when the operator is 25 ft or more away, or it is out of sight.
- 16Fuel, batteries and fumesEngine trucks and battery trucks
- 17Try it: a 20-minute floor walkA 20-minute team activity
- 18Check your understanding4 check questions
- 19AnswersThe answers, to discuss
- 20Key points and next stepsNext: run the floor walk in your busiest aisle.
The 50-minute session, slide by slide
- Slides, about: 30 minutes
- Activity (slide 17): 20 minutes
Present · 16 slides
- 1Forklift safety: drive and work around trucks safely
- 2Agenda
- 3What the standard covers
- 4What this deck is, and is not
- 5Who may drive: the training rules
- 6What operator training must cover
- 7When refresher training is due
- 8Stability and the load center
- 9Example: a long load and the data plate
- 10The daily examination
- 11Travelling: rules that prevent collisions
- 12People around the truck
- 13Loads and lifting
- 14Docks, trailers and ramps
- 15Parking and leaving the truck
- 16Fuel, batteries and fumes
Do the activity · 1 slide
- 17Try it: a 20-minute floor walk
Check and follow up · 3 slides
- 18Check your understanding
- 19Answers
- 20Key points and next steps
About 30 minutes of slides and 20 minutes of activity. Present: slides 1 to 16 (Forklift safety: drive and work around trucks safely; Agenda; What the standard covers; What this deck is, and is not; Who may drive: the training rules; What operator training must cover; When refresher training is due; Stability and the load center; Example: a long load and the data plate; The daily examination; Travelling: rules that prevent collisions; People around the truck; Loads and lifting; Docks, trailers and ramps; Parking and leaving the truck; Fuel, batteries and fumes). Do the activity: slide 17 (Try it: a 20-minute floor walk). Check and follow up: slides 18 to 20 (Check your understanding; Answers; Key points and next steps).
How to run it
Running the session
- 1
Prepare
Read the speaker notes once and swap the illustrative example for one from your own area if you have it. Print the PDF if people like a handout.
- 2
Present
The slides take about 30 minutes. Every slide has notes, so you can talk from them rather than read the slide.
- 3
Do the activity
Walk one aisle and one dock with the daily exam sheet. This is a look-only walk. Nobody drives. The activity slide takes the team through it step by step; allow 20 minutes.
- 4
Check and follow up
Ask the check questions before showing the answers, then agree one next step with an owner and a date before people leave.
The check questions
- 1. How often must a truck be examined, and when is it taken out of service?
- Before it is placed in service, at least daily, and after each shift on round-the-clock use, (q)(7). Any truck found unsafe is taken out of service, (p)(1).
- 2. A truck is rated 2,000 lb at a 24 in load center. By the Appendix A method, what is the most a 60 in long load can weigh?
- 1,600 lb: 2,000 x 24 = 48,000, divided by the 30 in load center of a 60 in load. The data plate still decides.
- 3. An operator walks 30 ft away and the truck is still in view. What state must the truck be in?
- It is unattended: forks fully lowered, controls neutral, power off, brakes set, and wheels blocked on an incline, (m)(5).
- 4. When is refresher training required?
- After unsafe driving, an accident or near miss, a poor evaluation, a different truck type or a workplace change, (l)(4)(ii). Evaluation is at least every three years.
Templates and guides to go with it
- Forklift inspection checklist23 pre-shift checks for a week on one page, a do-not-operate rule, and a defect and repair log.
- Forklift operator training and evaluation recordPer-operator training and evaluation record, a register with three-year due dates and refresher triggers, and a weighted practical evaluation scoresheet.
- Warehouse safety inspection checklistThirty warehouse safety checks from aisles to fire exits, marked OK or Not OK, with an action for every finding.
- Pallet racking inspection checklistRack checks per aisle with a green, amber and red damage rating, and a damage log with repair dates.
- Topic: Safety managementEvery guide we have on the subject, sorted.
Read more
- Warehouse safety: powered trucks, racking, docks and the OSHA paragraph behind each
- Forklift and pedestrian safety poster
- Near miss reporting: how to collect and close the near misses that warn of a truck incident
- Competency management: know who is qualified for every job, on every shift
- Workplace safety in manufacturing
Terms in this deck
FAQ
Forklift safety training presentation: common questions
No. OSHA requires formal instruction, practical training and an evaluation of the operator in the workplace, 1910.178(l)(2)(ii). This deck supports the formal instruction part. The practical training and the evaluation on your own trucks still have to be done by a qualified person.
Part of it can. The standard lists lecture, discussion, interactive computer learning, video and written material as formal instruction. Practical training and the workplace evaluation cannot be done on a screen.
At least once every three years, 1910.178(l)(4)(iii). Refresher training comes earlier after unsafe driving, an accident or near miss, a poor evaluation, a different type of truck or a change in the workplace, (l)(4)(ii).
It covers motorized hand trucks, so a powered pallet jack is included. A manual pallet jack has no motor and is outside this standard.
About 50 minutes: roughly 30 minutes of slides, a 20-minute floor walk and the check questions.
Yes. The PowerPoint file is fully editable, including the speaker notes. Many teams add their own trucks, load types, walkway rules and dock layout.
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