It can really be simple to neglect the essential tire, when it comes to the maintenance of the forklift. When you select the wrong tire for your forklift, you could put huge increases on your operating expenses, and more importantly increase your safety risks. If however, you pick correct tire you can enjoy improved safety, significant cost-savings and an overall more efficient operation. A correctly chosen tire could really lessen the downtime for replacement and potentially last 40 percent longer.
The lift truck tire is a somewhat complex component of the machine. It is therefore, easy to select the wrong type accidentally. There are so many different brands of tires and kinds, with various compounds and treads. This means you must be totally prepared with the correct information when you are going shopping for tires so that you can choose some safe and durable options to help extend the life of your lift truck.
The specific type of tire chosen for a lift truck depends on the type of surface you would be utilizing the machinery on. Like for instance, smoother surfaces and indoor applications normally utilize tires which are made from rubber and that are smaller in size. On the other hand, outdoor applications need pneumatic tires. Pneumatic tires are filled with compressed air and have a rubber tread. These characteristics give them a good grip on uneven and rough surfaces.
Forklift Tire Safety
Each year, there are approximately 200 people killed in accidents related for lift truck use. Ensuring lift truck safety, like correct inspection practices, can all contribute in to avoiding these horrible and dangerous mishaps from taking place.
Pre-Work Check
The tires of the forklift have to be checked prior to each shift. Tires should ideally have the right air pressure, that is set by the tire manufacturer. This is extremely essential because if the tire pressure is too low, the equipment can inadvertently tip over when a load is being raised.
Types
For indoor work, forklifts that have solid tires made out of rubber are the best alternative.
Other Considerations
The Occupational Health and Safety Administration or OSHA require that forklifts utilized on a continual basis need to be checked at the completion of every shift. The driver needs to check the machinery for any kind of mechanical problems and the tires must be looked over for excessive wear, cuts or apparent damage to the tires. Any issues which are detected should be dealt with as soon as possible to maintain safety.