Lion's office will be closed on Thursday, 11/28 and Friday, 11/29 for Thanksgiving.
Support for online training is available—email support@Lion.com (8:30 AM to 5 PM ET). 
Search

Forklift Safety: How Much Weight Can My Forklift Carry?

Posted on 3/6/2012 by James Griffin

Q. How can I tell how much weight my forklift can carry?
 
A. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) protects workers in the workplace. This includes safe operations of powered industrial trucks (PITs), commonly called forklifts. The complete set of rules for these can be found under the Materials Handling and Storage section of OSHA regulations at 29 CFR 1910.178.
 
At 29 CFR 1910.178(o)(2), OSHA states that “only loads within the rated capacity of a truck shall be handled.” The rated capacity can be found on the “data plate” located on the forklift. You can see an example data plate below.
 
Forklifting Warning Label
 
There are several important numbers on the data plate, which include the rated maximum capacity (shown with the left arrow) as well as the load center (shown with the right arrow).
 
The load capacity is fairly straightforward. You should never attempt to lift more than the rated capacity, which on this plate is 5,000 lbs.
 
The load center, on the other hand, is the center of gravity for the load and, according to this data plate, should not be greater than 24 inches. It would not be good to have a center of gravity larger than this, because if the center of gravity is too far forward, the forklift can tip forward. This could cause the load to fall off or even possibly cause the forklift to fall over.
 
You can actually have a center of gravity larger than the one listed on the data plate, but this will force you to carry a lighter load. You can calculate a new load limit by using a simple formula, as follows:
 
Rated load center / Actual load center x Rated capacity = New safe load capacity
 
For instance, let’s say our load actually had a load center of 28 inches. Using the equation, we can figure out the new rated capacity.
 
24 inches / 28 inches x 5,000 lbs. = 4,286 lbs.
 
To view OSHA’s complete rules on PITs, click here.
 

Tags: osha

Find a Post

Compliance Archives

Lion - Quotes

I love that the instructor emphasized the thought process behind the regs.

Rebecca Saxena

Corporate Product Stewardship Specialist

I was able to present my scenario to the instructor and worked thru the regulations together. In the past, I attended another training firm's classes. Now, I have no intention of leaving Lion!

Diana Joyner

Senior Environmental Engineer

The instructor was very very informative, helpful, understandable and pleasant. This course answered many questions I had, being new to this industry.

Frances Mona

Shipping Manager

Lion is at the top of the industry in compliance training. Course content and structure are updated frequently to make annual re-training enjoyable. I like that Lion has experts that I can contact for 1 year after the training.

Caroline Froning

Plant Chemist

Best instructor ever! I was going to take my DOT training w/a different provider, but based on this presentation, I will also be doing my DOT training w/Lion!

Donna Moot

Hazardous Waste Professional

I can't say enough how pleased I was with this course! Everything finally makes sense.

Kim Graham

Lab Manager

I really enjoy your workshops. Thank you for such a great program and all the help Lion has provided me over the years!

George Chatman

Hazardous Material Pharmacy Technician

The instructor was very engaging and helped less experienced people understand the concepts.

Steve Gall

Safety Leader

The online course was well thought out and organized, with good interaction between the student and the course.

Larry Ybarra

Material Release Agent

I attended training from another provider and learned absolutely nothing. Lion is much better. Hands down.

Nicole Eby

Environmental Specialist

Download Our Latest Whitepaper

The definitive 10-step guide for new hazardous materials shipping managers. Quickly reference the major considerations and details that impact hazmat shipping compliance.

Latest Whitepaper

By submitting your phone number, you agree to receive recurring marketing and training text messages. Consent to receive text messages is not required for any purchases. Text STOP at any time to cancel. Message and data rates may apply. View our Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.