Companies accredited by CFTS agree to abide by a strict procedural code, ensuring uniformly high standards and full compliance with the law.

With UK trade show IMHX a few weeks away, Consolidated Fork Truck Services (CFTS) has announced that over 300 companies are now accredited to deliver the UK's only nationally agreed procedure for the Thorough Examination of forklifts.

CFTS chairman Simon Emery says this means that wherever a user's operations are in the UK, there is a CFTS-accredited company nearby to ensure the forklifts' compliance with the law.

Under current UK legislation, every forklift over 12 months old must have a current report of Thorough Examination. The forklift's owner or user is responsible for this. Even if the forklift is on hire, the user has a duty to ensure that a Thorough Examination has been carried out in the correct timescales.

Emery claims that the CFTS Thorough Examination Scheme that was developed with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is widely acknowledged as the most comprehensive and robust inspection regime for forklifts.

"The reason is quite simple. CFTS criteria and procedures have been developed by the people who know most about forklifts: the British Industrial Truck Association (BITA) and the Fork Lift Truck Association (FLTA) in conjunction with the HSE," he explains.

"It is this in-depth understanding of the specialist needs of forklifts that sets this dedicated scheme apart. While other, more generalised programmes address the basic requirements of LOLER 98, the CFTS Thorough Examination procedure is exceptional in that it ensures full compliance with both PUWER 98 and LOLER 98 as they relate specifically to forklifts," Emery adds.

Companies interested in CFTS-accredited Thorough Examination can use the www.thoroughexamination.org search facility. The newly created software requires visitors enter a postcode and search radius, and the search engine will deliver the full contact details of companies nearby.

A company search by name facility is also available for forklift owners and operators who want to confirm if their current Thorough Examination provider is accredited to CFTS. A short explanatory video on the scheme is also posted on the website. CFTS will be exhibiting at IMHX 2010, at stand 19L138.