5 Reasons Why a Digital Safety Checklist Can Improve Forklift Performance and Safety

A forklift safety checklist needs to be completed either every day or after each shift, especially when the lift trucks are being used for two to three shifts per day. This is according to the OSHA 29 CFR 1910.178 standard interpretation. However, what it doesn’t mention is how the forklift safety checklist needs to be done or the information collected.

Forklift Safety Checklist

If you’ve been in the industry, you know what a forklift safety checklist is all about. You also know that getting the forklift safety checklist completed can be challenging. You might have seen our video where the manager is talking to the forklift operator trying to get him to complete the inspection. What does the driver do? You got it. He drives off as he ‘doesn’t have time’. He wants to get his quota completed for the day.

Is the Forklift Safety Checklist Working?

Who doesn’t want to take a shortcut? When you use the same checklist each day, you already know what it says. Those that complete the checklist may do a couple of actions:

• Pencil whipping – this is when the operator quickly fills out the forklift checklist fast. They already know what questions come first, second, third and so on.
• Half reading – the operator tries to answer the questions more thoroughly, but only at a 50% capacity.
• Completes the checklist thoroughly. This is when the operator takes the time to check and answer the questions to the best of their ability.

Managers try to collect the pieces of paper and put them in a binder. Sometimes, booklets are provided so the checklists are kept together. However, there have been times when the booklets have gone missing. If all goes well, approximately once per week the checklists get reviewed, searching for issues that need to be tended to. Is this really working?

Digital Forklift Safety Checklist

Since a paper checklist has its challenges, switching to digital has its advantages. However, not all digital forklift checklists are the same. Let’s take a look at a few of the advantages.

1. With a digital checklist, paperwork never gets misplaced or lost
2. All information gets automatically collected so the data can be better analyzed
3. In the SIERA.AI Digital Checklist Safety System, questions can be randomized to keep the forklift operator alert
4. In the SIERA.AI digital checklist the answers can also be randomized to avoid the problems of pencil whipping or lack of filling in the answers
5. Best yet, the forklift will simply not start if the checklist isn’t completed or if the forklift fails its inspection

Telemetry Dashboard

Now that the forklift drivers are complying with safety checklists, it’s time to get the data collected from the SIERA.AI Digital Checklist and into the telemetry Dashboard. This is where you can analyze the answers to the questions, set notifications alerts and monitor the health of the forklift fleet. It is quick and easy to use for fast and accurate analysis. Ready to get started?

Take a Look

Take a look at how the SIERA.AI S2 Digital Checklist works. It’s a great way to be sure your forklift fleet is OSHA compliant and operating at effectively. Contact us today at sales@siera.ai.