Counterbalance lift truck Training
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration or OSHA require that anybody utilizing a counterbalanced forklift receive lecture style or classroom training. They also require that a supervised driving course is completed in addition to periodic refresher training. There is no required minimum time for the classroom training or supervised driving. Furthermore, there is no frequency mandated for the refresher training either.
Counterbalanced Forklifts
A counterbalanced lift truck balances its load utilizing the truck's weight. The forks on a lift truck are in a fixed position; they go up and down and do not pivot. The forks run parallel to the body of the forklift. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration require that individuals who will be using counterbalanced forklifts on the job be trained on the trucks while being in the kind of environment that they will be utilizing them.
Classroom Training
Lecture style training or classroom training offers information regarding the truck that the driver would be driving. This training includes aspects such as load and weight capacity, height, how to fuel or charge the forklift. It covers how to gauge the time on the engine along with any forklift specific safety information like for instance where to stand when walking around the truck. Either oral and/or written testing is part of the classroom training. There is no minimum time requirement for the training.
Supervised Driving
The operator of a lift truck would have to learn to utilize the equipment while being supervised. The supervised driving needs to take place in an environment that resembles the current environment that the driver works in. This atmosphere should include the kind of terrain she would be traveling on, have similar pedestrian and vehicle traffic close by, and the same surrounding structures close by too. There is no specific minimum number of hours the driver has to drive while being supervised.