Forklift Safety Lights - What Are They?

What is the history behind forklift safety lights? When did they become a necessity? These forklift bright yellow lights are what most people think of when they think of forklift safety. They are also referred to as "the little red light in the front of the forklift." While these intense yellow spot lights do serve a purpose, they can also be dangerous.

These bright yellow spot lights usually stay on top of the forklift while it is in operation to warn pedestrians and vehicles in the path of a forklift. Good for approaching dock areas, narrow corners, and low-clearances, these bright yellow lights usually shine about 16 to 24 feet past the front forks of forklifts to warn anyone in their path. However, a curious fact about forklift lights is that they don't actually point out to anything. They are there to warn of an upcoming hazard or potential danger to people in the area.

As with all safety equipment, forklift safety lights have had numerous uses and occurrences throughout their history. The most famous of these is probably the use of strobe lights on fire trucks to signal a flammable material. This is still done, but in less of a commercial capacity. While a truck like a fire truck will still use these strobe-style lights, there has been a recent push to make forklifts also offer a line of strobe lights that go on the front of the forklift as well. While this doesn't address the safety issue of people backing away from the forklift, it does offer a look of the equipment that could potentially be used by emergency medical services or law enforcement officials.

Another popular forklift safety light is the blue lighted face of the machine itself. While there are many different types of shapes and designs of these warning signs, the most popular and universal one is the simple circle. The reason for this is that while different emergencies may call for different types of shapes, the more common ones such as a round, square or rectangular shape are fairly universal and don't really require any additional explanation. However, there are also certain colors that are known to be particularly effective in certain environments such as bright yellow or orange.

Red lights are another type of forklift safety lights that are often seen on forklifts. This is largely because most forklifts have a red stripe across their roofs. Red warning lights are almost always accompanied by another color, usually white. This is because, although red may be a good color to use if you're trying to signify something that's burning or that there is something on the floor which needs to be tended to, it is very easy to confuse the need for red lights with the need for other, more dangerous types of warning lights.

Pedestrians and other objects along the road or in the vicinity of forklifts are another group of people who should have warning or red lights displayed on them. This is especially true of areas where forklifts are usually parked or where forklift safety lights are attached to the machinery. One reason why this is so important is that when red lights are displayed, for example, on forklifts in front of pedestrians, it is easy for them to mistake this as a signal to cross the road or move into a path that's not actually intended. While this can certainly be a frustrating situation, it is absolutely necessary in order to ensure that the drivers and the other people who might be crossing the road or around machinery don't become injured or get into otherwise dangerous situations.