Forklift Safety for Those Truly Serious about It | Toyota Equipment

Just how serious are you about safety? Back when Toyota?s ?System of Active Stability? [SAS] was introduced we thought that it was the killer app for forklifts, one that would make the trucks a sure fire ?hit? with the safety minded. I think it?s helped but I?m uncertain that safety at the end of the day has as much value when measured by the wallet as it does if you only consider corporate rhetoric.

We went through SAS in a previous post while in a recent article in Warehouse News from the UK, there was additional support for this game changing feature. I?ll share the article with you here in hope the safety of employees be given the consideration it should be.

An independent test of forklift trucks from four well-known brands has demonstrated exceptional stability for the Toyota Tonero engine powered forklift, equipped with the Toyota System of Active Stability (SAS). The test was conducted by the independent testing organisation Union Technique de l?Automobile, du Motocycle et du Cycle (UTAC).

Test conditions followed a proposed European standard for dynamic lateral stability. While all four forklifts passed the independent test, only the Toyota Tonero achieved an excellent score on all requirements. Forklift stability is a key safety factor, and these test results demonstrate that Toyota forklifts with SAS are best equipped to help companies drive down driver and damage costs related to tip-over accidents.

The independent testing organization UTAC tested four standard, commonly available forklift trucks including the Toyota Tonero. The test conditions were based on a proposed European norm. The Toyota Tonero passed with flying colors, outperforming the proposed standard ? and the other tested forklift models ? in a test designed to measure dynamic lateral stability.

Dynamic lateral stability refers to the ability of a forklift truck to stay upright and not tip over while in motion. The dynamic stability test ? with two professional test drivers having differing levels of forklift driving experience ? involved making sharp turns at speed to determine whether the forklift would become unstable. Particular attention was paid to whether the forklift?s inner rear wheel left the ground, as this indicates vehicle instability and could lead to the forklift tipping over.

During more than 200 rounds of testing, the Toyota Tonero far exceeded the other forklift trucks being tested. In particular, the Toyota Tonero was the only truck where the inner wheel did not leave the ground with either driver, demonstrating the exceptional dynamic lateral stability provided by Toyota SAS.

Tony Wallis Operations Director for Toyota Material Handling UK stated ?By providing excellent stability, Toyota SAS can help prevent accidents, injuries and damage to goods. Loss of lateral stability leading to vehicle tip-over is a major cause of serious forklift accidents and injuries, and is the single largest cause of forklift accident fatalities. It is a clear indication of our focus and desire to improve workplace safety for operators and drive down damage costs in business, we strongly believe we can support businesses in establishing safe, healthy, productive workplaces, by providing high-quality materials handling products, services and solutions, as this test demonstrates, Toyota SAS helps keep our forklifts stable, protecting drivers, goods and the trucks themselves. SAS addresses costs in two key areas ? driver costs and damages costs, which together can account for more than 70% of the life cycle cost of your forklift. Forklift accidents can have particularly serious consequences for companies.

Toyota SAS can help to reduce the risk of forklift accidents, protecting your employees and your bottom line.?

SAS: six unique features that help protect drivers and goods

As the focus on workplace safety increases across Europe, Toyota SAS stands out as technology that can actively help to reduce the risk of accidents and drive down materials handling costs. Unique to Toyota forklift trucks, SAS constantly monitors forklift operations and automatically takes corrective action when it senses factors that could lead to truck or load instability. There are six advanced SAS functions: the unique swing lock cylinder, mast front tilt angle control, mast rear tilt speed control, the active steering synchroniser and one touch fork leveling control, as well as speed reduction when cornering on Toyota?s 3-wheel counterbalance forklift models. All SAS functions work together and help to keep the truck, driver and goods safely on the move ? and productivity on the up. This way, SAS helps drive down costs for business.

Test results, certified by UTAC

In the forklift industry, current standards do not cover risk exposure related to dynamic lateral overturn (sideways tip-over) accidents. Research conducted jointly by the Institut National de Recherch? et de S?curit? (INRS) in France and the University of Hamburg in Germany has led to a protocol for testing dynamic lateral stability. The test procedure works by creating dynamic lateral overturning movements in machines travelling along a curved trajectory.

This test protocol, which has been submitted to the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) for evaluation and approval, provides a realistic and independent assessment of the safety performance of forklift trucks. By applying this test protocol, the French testing agency UTAC validated the excellent stability afforded by Toyota SAS.
Committed to safety

Toyota Material Handling strongly believes the company can support businesses in establishing safe, healthy, productive working environments, by providing high-quality materials handling products, services and solutions. Apart from this test, the company is setting up other projects to further expand its contribution in these areas.

Source: http://www.toyotaequipment.com/blog/index.php/forklift-safety-for-those-truly-serious-about-it/

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