Thanks to its pivotal role in the materials handling industry, the Fork Lift Truck Association (FLTA) is able to share a cautionary tale which might not otherwise have come to light.

A very reputable United Kingdom company, which has asked not to be named, reported an incident involving the sudden breaking of a chain on one of its seven-tonne forklifts.

More alarming still was that the chain was less than 18 months old, and no advance warning of a problem had been detected, despite the company's extremely rigorous, six-monthly inspection program.

Using specialist sonic equipment, tests on this and six similar forklifts identified further horrors: two faulty chains and 31 broken pins. None of the damage was visible to the naked eye.

The company concluded that forklifts operated in harsh conditions - over rough and rutted ground on solid tyres, constantly carrying maximum load and regularly subjected to shock - would need additional and more thorough checks.

The company let the FLTA know about the problem so others using forklifts in tough environments could be made aware of the danger.

"Highly-sensitive electronic instruments can be used to detect hairline cracks and other imperfections in situations like this," said FLTA chairman Brian Warbrick.

"We will be delighted to pass on further information to anyone inquiring, and would like to thank the company concerned for contacting the FLTA and allowing us to bring this issue to people's attention."

As part of its service to the materials handling industry, the FLTA runs the Safe User Group, which provides information on safety concerns, technical explanations, common-sense interpretation of legislation and a helpline.

For more information on the Safe User Group and the range of other services provided by the FLTA, visit www.fork-truck.org.

Fork Talk is a new Forkliftaction.com News editorial service available to non-profit forklift and related industry bodies around the world. If you would like to have your association's news included in this column, email www.forkliftaction.com.