An example from Rite Hite Holding Corp

A safety study identifies dock congestion, wet slippery areas and trucks prematurely pulling away from a dock as primary causes of about 88% of dock injuries, including those involving forklift trucks.

Developing and actively enforcing safe operating procedures should impact the bulk of those issues, says Dan Beer. He is director of sales for Forklift Blackbelt Training Inc in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and Blaine, Washington, United States and president of the Canadian Material Handling and Distribution Society (CMHDS) in Vancouver.

The study stemmed from the provincial agency WorkSafeBC, which in 2012 identified warehousing activities as having the highest injury rate of any ratable subsector.

The Langley-based Trucking Safety Council of British Columbia funded the research.

Beer surveyed 100 associates from across Canada and the US, asking them to identify the three leading causes of injuries on the dock.

A truck leaving prematurely is the most dangerous concern, but occurs the least frequently. The circumstance often stems from poor communication between the truck driver and the dock worker who often have competing priorities, Beer notes. One worker wants to get unloaded/loaded quickly, while the other may have that task lower on a priority list.

"One best practice strategy to combat the tenuous relationship between the dock worker and truck driver is a restraint management system," Beer says. The components include a multi-level restraint strategy, a visual safe operating procedure and the dock worker having the ultimate responsibility.

A life is at stake as a forklift operator travels over the dock leveler into the truck and then backs out.

"If the driver pulls the trailer away prematurely, the dock worker is in danger," Beer notes. "So, even if the company policy is to have the truck driver set his wheel chocks, the dock worker has to manage that (and) look to make sure they are set and take appropriate action if they are not set properly."

Beer reports that at least 30% of injuries on a dock can be due to water or other liquids producing a slippery surface on dense concrete or metal dock levelers. Prevention measures can include dock shelters, getting truckers to minimise rain accumulation on a trailer and use of slip-resistant footwear.

Reducing dock congestion requires development of an overall traffic management plan incorporating exclusion zones, high-visibility vests, pedestrian instruction and safety devices such as cones, bollards, backup lights and audible warnings.