Forklift trucks are fantastic machines, allowing us to lift and carry enormous weights that we would otherwise not be able to move. They can be an intrinsic part of a business, and you do not realise how much you rely on them until they are not working, and you can no longer use them. To help prevent your forklift trucks from being offline and needing repair, you will want to create a suitable service schedule for them. There are various checks you will want to do daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly, and below are some of the things your service schedule for your forklift trucks will need to cover.
Daily Checks Of Your Vehicles
Before anyone uses the forklift trucks at the start of the working day, you will want to ensure the driver does their due diligence and checks their vehicle. They will want to ensure that the forklift is fully charged or fuelled and do an overall visual inspection of the machine. Ensure you test the lights and the horn, check oil, and the brake lights work. You need to make the people driving the forklifts responsible for their daily checks, and you can provide them with a check list at the start of their shift that they must submit.
Weekly Checks Of Your Vehicle
At the end of the working week, it is worth spending a few minutes inspecting the forklift trucks and going into more detail than your daily checks. Look at the same things you check daily, but then also look at things such as wear on the tyres, and pneumatic fluid levels, check connections and give plugs and connectors a quick clean. You may also want to use some electrical cleaner and ensure that all contacts have a good connection and give them a quick spray. Your daily checks should take around five minutes or so, and the weekly checks will not take much longer, but the monthly checks of your forklift truck will go into more detail.
Monthly Checks Of Your Vehicle
At the end of the month, you will want to give your forklift trucks a closer inspection and do some preventative maintenance work to help keep them fully functional and in excellent condition. You will want to clean the air filter, you may also need to change the oil, and you will also want to check the main structure of the vehicle and look for cracks. You will also want to lubricate everything to ensure it moves freely, and it is worth checking the batteries while you are there.
Yearly Checks Of Your Vehicle
Once a year, you will want to give your forklift truck a full service, and you will need to do things such as:
- Change the fuel filter
- Clean or replace the fuel strainer element
- Check the brakes work correctly
- Top up the engine coolant
- Top up the brake fluid
- Ensure everything is correctly greased and lubricated
It is work getting a mechanical specialist to come and service your forklift trucks fully once a year, and they can also help spot any potential problems you may want to know about with your forklifts. Taking excellent care of your vehicles will help keep them operational, reduce downtime, and ensure they work when needed.
