Hi I work for Motor Transport newspaper and I’m looking at health and safety issues for drivers at hubs. I’m especially interested in the pallet network sector which has suffered a number of incidents in recent months.
I’d appreciate any stories and experiences from network trunk drivers and/or any other health and safety issues that you’ve come up against.
Many thanks.
Liz
lizwe how about roping and sheeting a recent problem that has arouse again this week when loading with machinery with no saftey harness or a gantry just a fork lift truck to lift the sheets up we are,then expected to roll them out whilst balancing on slippery machinery, hence they werent sheeted and returned to the yard our own health and saftey officer is looking into this problem .but another opinion on this matter will be helpful.
How about tail lift deliveries of half-tonne plus pallets on steep slopes, where you’re paranoid about going off the edge of the lift and having the whole lot flatten you. Most hubs manage reasonably flat unloading areas, but not all of them. A few smaller ones have areas with slopes. If it’s quiet, you’re fine, but everyone else takes up the flat spots in busy times, and quite often you can end up trying to tip on a slope. (DFDS Bristol as an example)
Pallets these days only barely fit on a tail-lift, which means careful manouvering of the pallets, and if there’s a slope and a heavy pallet, you’re only inches from disaster each time.
How many men have trouble with a big pallet on a slope, and imagine how the women feel?
Next issue is demon forkies, who shoot around at full speed the whole time. An accident waiting to happen. Some of the forkies who tipped my rigid at DHL Coalville a while ago were going in and out so hard, it’s a wonder they didn’t put the forks into the cab. (This was dock unloading)
I’ve seen plenty of trucks being loaded for trunks with pallets upon pallets, stacked high in a standard tautliner. A few sharp corners, and you’re taking your life into you hands touching the curtains.
lizwe:
I’d appreciate any stories and experiences from network trunk drivers and/or any other health and safety issues that you’ve come up against.Many thanks.
Liz
Liz, welcome to TruckNetUK
Can I please remind everyone that all material posted on these forums is the copyright of TruckNet and for Liz to use any of your comments, you need to post to that effect.
All it needs is something at the end like “Your welcome to use my comments” or something along those lines.