It can be simple to neglect the essential tire, when it comes to the maintenance of the forklift. When you pick the wrong tire for your lift truck, you could put huge increases on your operating costs, and more importantly increase your safety risks. If however, you select correct tire you could enjoy improved safety, substantial cost-savings and an overall more efficient operation. A correctly selected tire could actually reduce the downtime for replacement and probably last 40 percent longer.
Tires are actually somewhat complex components on the machinery; therefore, it is easy to choose the wrong type accidentally. There are numerous different kinds of tires and brands, with different treads and compounds. This means you need to be totally prepared with the right information when you are going shopping for tires so that you can decide on some safe and durable options to help extend the life of your forklift.
The particular type of tire selected for a forklift depends on the kind of surface you will be using the equipment on. For example, smoother surfaces and indoor applications normally utilize tires which are made from rubber and that are a smaller size. On the contrary, outdoor operations need pneumatic tires. Pneumatic tires have a rubber tread and are filled with compressed air. These features give them a great grip on rough and uneven 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 for example proper inspection practices, can all contribute in to preventing these horrible and dangerous accidents from occurring.
Pre-Work Inspection
Prior to every shift, the forklift's tires have to be checked. Ideally, they should have the proper air pressure, as set forth by the manufacturer. This is extremely important because if the tire pressure is too low, the machine can accidentally tip over when a load is being raised.
Kinds
The tires used on indoor forklifts will be made out of solid rubber.
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 each and every shift. The driver has to inspect the equipment for any mechanical issues and the tires should be looked over for cuts, excessive wear or apparent damage to the tires. Any problems that are detected must be dealt with as soon as possible to maintain safety.