REPAIR
the Swindon-based industry training
centre F-TEC, which has introduced
an ‘Up-Skilling Course: IMI – Lift Truck
Maintenance & Repair Quali cation
Level 3’. This six-month programme,
combining distance learning with ve
one-week training blocks, is intended for
working technicians who have experience
with machines and a knowledge of the
operating principles of combustion
engines and/or electric vehicles.
F-TEC also operates a register of
technicians called Pro-Tec, which it
says “delivers a nationally approved
set of standards for forklift engineers,
technicians and powered access
technicians that provides consistency
across the industry”. Those on the register
must have been trained to at least Level 3
via the apprenticeship process, or via an
online assessment called F-Check.
And of course the manufacturers and
distributors also o er in-house training.
Alan Power is the UK technical training and
support manager for forklift manufacturer
Jungheinrich. He says: “We give all our
engineers, whatever their background,
basic training.” That takes place over six
weeks, and has a strong emphasis on
safety:
“We give them IOSH Institution of
Occupational Safety and Health training,
for instance on doing a dynamic risk
assessment”. Working At Height training
is also included, as some of the rm’s
trucks can reach as high as 13m. “Then we
have them in for driver training – it’s really
important that they know how to operate
the truck.” Jungheinrich has training
facilities in Milton Keynes and Warrington,
and supports apprentices, overseen by a
designated apprentice manager: “Some of
them are going to Hinckley College.”
SERVICE PRACTICES
For Rushlift, “at least 90% of our work is
done on site,” says Simon Lewis. “We have
fully-equipped vans with specialist tools
but we do ask for a safe area to work in.
We have cones and barriers to mark it o ;
we ask for somewhere safe, dry and out
of the way, but also where the engineer
can be seen so that if something happens
they are not lone working”.
Good lighting is important, but
otherwise few specialist facilities are
needed: “In some workshops they have
table lifts to work on the junior
trucks,” says Power, but “all
our mobile workshops
have 5- or 10-tonne
jacks and hardwood
blocks to support
them”. Inspection pits
are of limited use with
FLTs, and “Unlike with
cars you access a lot of
the equipment through
the top or the back.”
Forklifts have particular
safety issues: according to Alan Power,
technicians “need to be aware that there
are trap hazards and crush hazards around
the machinery.” Jungheinrich provides
technicians with a ‘pink chain’ (pictured
above) to secure the mast so it doesn’t
lower while somebody is working on it.
An important aspect of FLT
maintenance is the electrical side: electric
FLTs typically operate at 48V or 80V,
substantially di erent from the typical
roadgoing 12V or 24V system. “Part of
the basic training is how to isolate the
truck and make it safe,” says Alan Power.
“There’s always an isolation switch. Unless
you’re testing voltages you isolate it.”
Simon Lewis adds that “Electric trucks
Left: a technician testing the
air gap of an electric brake.
Right: a chain secures a mast
during repair
tend to be more reliable – and since
they’ve gone AC-powered, they are far
easier to repair because there are far
fewer moving parts.”
Whether powered by electricity or
internal combustion, “The hydraulics is
the key part of the machine,” says Lewis.
Alan Power points out that operating at
pressures of 200bar, “if you get pinholes
in a hose there’s real danger. We show
technicians how to reduce the pressure
before removing a hose. They all have a
pressure gauge to test the system, and
we have an access point in the hydraulics
to tap o .”
Chains and fork blades are other critical
items. The FLTA has released a Technical
Bulletin on the ‘Inspection and Repair of
Fork Arms’ which describes compliance
with ISO standards 2330 and 5057. BITA
has also published guidance on
checking chains for stretch
and signs of failure, and
correct maintenance and
cleaning.
Chains, forks and
hydraulics are all
covered by the Lifting
Operations and Lifting
Equipment Regulations
1998 (LOLER) which
demands regular Thorough
Examinations by an approved
person – at least every year, or every
six months for some MHE. Similarly, the
propulsion system, brakes, seat belts and
other parts are covered by the Provision
and Use of Work Equipment Regulations
(PUWER), speci cally Part (iii) relating to
mobile equipment.
While typical service intervals for
FLTs are 500 hours – usually four times
a year – Lewis stresses the importance
of preventive maintenance, and the preshift
check undertaken by the operator.
He adds that forklifts “do tend to be the
neglected piece of equipment in the
yard – but a one-driver truck will be more
reliable than if several drivers are using it.
They tend to take more care of it.”
32 www.operationsengineer.org.uk Winter 2021
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