My boss has replaced our old forklift truck with a second-hand one and it doesn’t have a reversing beeper. Are there any guidelines around what is required?
Yes, there are guidelines – in fact, there are laws.
Your employer has a duty under s.21 of the OHS Act to provide a safe workplace, including safe plant, equipment and systems of work. Under the OHS Regulations there are specific requirements for items of plant, including lift trucks.
Regulation 110 requires employers to ensure that powered mobile plant that has a likelihood of colliding with pedestrians or other powered mobile plant is fitted with a warning device that will warn persons who may be at risk from the movement of the plant. Mobile equipment includes truck, forklifts etc.
At regulation 113 the same requirements apply to employers who use industrial lift trucks to ensure that the industrial lift truck is fitted with warning devices that are appropriate to effectively warn people who may be at risk from the movement of the industrial lift truck.
You can find guidance about controlling the hazards associated with workplace plant at the WorkSafe publication and Compliance Code: Plant. The Code states that where powered mobile plant is used that has a likelihood of colliding with pedestrians or other plant the employer must ensure that the powered mobile plant is fitted with a warning device that will warn people who may be at risk from the movement of the plant.
In the Code the following advice is given about automatic audible alarms:
- Automatic audible alarms are usually fitted to warn of forward or reversing movement. These alarms emit an intermittent sound which is activated when the gear or drive lever is engaged.
- If automatic audible alarms are used, the sound should be distinct and clearly audible only in the hazardous area. If several items of plant are using the same warning device it may be difficult for employees and contractors to be aware of which item of plant is moving or is about to move. It is also possible that employees and contractors will become desensitised to the sound, the working environment may be noisy, or employees and contractors may be required to wear PPE such as earmuffs. For this reason, it may be more effective to combine audible alarms with other warning devices, such as flashing lights.
You can find more information about mobile equipment safety at WorkSafe’s Forklift legal duties page, and also on our OHS Reps page Forklift Safety
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