Hot forklift deals should ignite concerns, warns Pyroban25 February 2010

As more plants turn to second-hand forklift trucks, safety specialist Pyroban is warning of the dangers.

"There is nothing more dangerous than buying and using a poorly maintained, supposedly explosion-proof forklift in a hazardous area," warns Darren Boiling, customer services manager for Pyroban.

Despite attractive prices, he says, some Pyroban trucks in the second-hand market are so old, they are not even ATEX compliant.

However, the real danger, he says, is those built since 2000 - which are ATEX compliant - now coming onto the second-hand market.

"This is where it could become dangerous, as some dealers do not understand what they are selling. What may appear to be an explosion-proof truck can be completely unsafe," points out Boiling.

And he adds: "Even if it is safe, how does the dealer know if it meets the specification? What zone, T class, gas group was it built for?"

Whether a company owns, leases or hires a forklift, there is an obligation to ensure that it holds a valid annual report of thorough examination. If the truck is explosion-proof, there should also be safety checks by a competent person, states Pyroban.

Boiling says an annual safety audit (ASA) by a Pyroban inspector is the only way to be sure. He says that an EX-ASA is carried out each year from new, but advises that buyers and sellers of used equipment should insist that an EX-ASA or EX-ASA+ is carried out before it is re-deployed.

"If there is an explosion resulting from the use of a second-hand explosion-proof truck, an investigation will look at the history, service regimes, parts used, if the engineer was trained and when it was last audited by an independent inspector," adds Boiling.

Brian Tinham

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