Forklift Maintenance: A Guide for Maintenance Managers

Managing Forklift Parts, Forklift Batteries, and More

Managing forklift parts and forklift batteries are just two of the many responsibilities that forklift maintenance managers have. Besides managing forklift servicing schedules (which we’ll dive into later), there are a number of responsibilities and tasks that maintenance managers have to juggle in order to keep the company fleet operating as it should. Preventative maintenance, spare parts management, and safety compliance are just a few of these tasks and responsibilities that are necessary to keep a forklift fleet operational.

Complete Preventative Maintenance
The main responsibility of forklift maintenance managers is to handle preventative maintenance and forklift servicing of the fleet. Maintenance managers and forklift operators must note the wear and tear of each forklift as it's used so they can better anticipate any preventative work a forklift may need, such as a new battery or brakes. Preventative and regular maintenance also saves your company money, because it can catch small issues before the forklift requires major servicing. Preventative maintenance is also easier when your forklift maintenance team keeps spare parts on hand for quick adjustments.

Have Spare Parts Ready
Having forklift parts like forklift batteries, filters, brake components, drive belts, and hydraulic components on hand for quick replacement decreases the time that forklifts aren’t available for use. Rather than waiting for these parts to arrive, your team can replace these parts as soon as possible during preventative maintenance for increased productivity. Knowing which parts your fleet goes through the most can help your maintenance team stock up on these parts in order to limit forklift downtime.

Remain Safety Compliant
Preventative maintenance benefits the operator, forklift, and company workflow. Not keeping up with preventative maintenance or maintenance schedules can compromise the safety of your team. Forklift failures might cause accidents, especially if forklifts stop abruptly as the driver operates them. Preventative and regular maintenance is critical in making sure the fleet is up to safety standards. OSHA requires US operators to complete pre-ops checklists before the drivers start operating the vehicle. This presents a great way to identify potential issues and decide how to proceed. Forklift maintenance managers must be fluent in the safety standards required by the government and company in order to keep your fleet safe for operation and use throughout the working environment. Implementing external safety and assurance systems can also safeguard your workforce and fleet, especially those found at ELOKON.

ELOKON Solutions for Maintenance Challenges
Completing preventative maintenance and pre-ops checklists is a great start to a comprehensive maintenance strategy. At ELOKON, we provide centralized forklift maintenance management solutions, which team leaders can access for streamlined communication. We’ve designed our ELOfleet Fleet Management System to simplify forklift fleet management. From pre-ops checklists and impact tracking, ELOfleet is a single solution for keeping up with the many demands of fleet management. ELOfleet is also designed for managing planned forklift servicing and team operations.