WHEN ONE MISSED STEP COULD COST A SHUTDOWN Forklift Incident as a Lesson in Operational Discipline and Maintenance Culture

On a routine afternoon inside a busy industrial facility, a simple oversight nearly turned into a serious accident.

- Manoj Srivastava

A forklift left unattended on a mild incline began rolling backward, unnoticed, only stopping after hitting a road kerb just short of a distracted employee. While no one was injured, the close call served as a much-needed reminder: the most minor operational errors can trigger a cascade of failures, not just in safety but also in equipment reliability.

The Incident

The forklift was temporarily parked on an inclined section of the plant's internal road. The operator stepped away without engaging the parking brake—an apparent deviation from the SOP. The slope, though mild, was enough for gravity to do its work. Down the bend, an employee stood with his back to the vehicle, speaking on the phone. Fortunately, the car was stopped by the kerb before contact. But the outcome could've been very different.

Maintenance Is More Than Lubrication – It’s Discipline

Though the forklift's braking system was later confirmed to be fully functional, the near-miss exposed a gap in operational maintenance discipline. In a well-oiled machinery ecosystem, preventive measures go beyond greasing fittings or topping up fluids—they also involve ensuring human behaviors align with equipment safety protocols.

This isn't just an EHS concern. Consider what could happen if the brake system had failed due to neglected maintenance—perhaps water contamination in hydraulic fluid, worn seals, or degraded lubricant. Any of these would make the incident not just an operator error but a full-blown system failure.

Sequence of Events (Summarized)

1. Forklift parked on an incline; parking brake not engaged.

2. The operator stepped away, assuming it was secure.