OSHA Required Forklift Safety Equipment - Strobe Lights and Backup Alarms

 Many people ask us whether a strobe light and backup alarm are required equipment on a forklift. The answer is not always clear on this one. The answer is it depends on the environment you are working in. What does this mean? Let’s look at each piece of equipment.



Strobe Lights



A strobe light sometimes referred to as a beacon light or a flashing light is required by OSHA but only in environments where the light is visible. What does this mean? It means if you can’t see the light, it has no utility and therefore OSHA would look for one. As an example, in a warehouse where is less light, the light emitted from a strobe light is visible to pedestrians and other drivers and therefore has the ability to make the work area more safe. It is in these situations, that OSHA would expect a forklift to be equipped with a strobe light. If you only use your forklift outside during daylight hours, chances are pedestrians and other equipment would not be able to see the light emitted from your strobe light. Here a strobe light would have little utility.


Backup Alarm


The same issue is applicable with a backup alarm or beeping alarm. There are some situations where work areas are very loud due to machinery or processing machines being in use. In a work area like this, it is unlikely that pedestrians or other equipment operators would be unable to hear and alarm and subsequently an alarm would be of no help to make the work area safe.

The one catch here is that if your equipment works in a variety of environments and this safety equipment might provide other equipment operators or pedestrians with a safer work area, than we would suggest that you have them on your equipment. That is why, when you purchase a Hyundai forklift from Hyundai Forklift of Southern California, these two safety items come as standard equipment and at no added cost.  Contact our parts department if you need to install or replace inoperative lights or alarms.