No job can--or should--be completed without proper safety protocols in place. This is particularly true when dealing with heavy machinery, such as forklifts, in the workplace.
The importance of operator safety training remains the first line of defense in reducing forklift-related incidents. However, it is known all too well in the lift truck industry that errors in operator judgment often lead to accidents. Toyota has developed the world’s first System of Active Stability™ (SAS), derived from automotive technology. Toyota’s SAS and Active Mast Control (AMC) technologies were designed specifically to reduce the likelihood of accidents during these “errors in judgment” scenarios.
SAS, which is standard equipment on all Toyota 4-wheel sit down internal combustion (IC) and electric lift trucks, uses patented technology developed by Toyota to sense mast height, load weight, vehicle speed and yaw rate (or angular acceleration); conditions that play a significant role in lateral lift truck stability. When the SAS sensors detect conditions, which may lead to a potential lateral overturn, SAS instantly interprets those conditions and locks a hydraulic cylinder on the rear steer axle, changing the lift truck’s stability footprint from triangular in shape to rectangular, thereby increasing lateral stability and substantially reducing the likelihood of a lateral overturn.
Following the introduction of SAS, transportation injuries involving forklifts in the United States decreased while the SAS field population increased between 1999 and 2010. While mandatory operator training enacted by OSHA certainly plays a large part in these reductions, the safety impact provided by SAS cannot be underestimated – Toyota’s SAS system helps reduce the likelihood of overturn accidents.
