Following on from the world-renowned Professional Chain Wear Gauge, FB Chain are launching a new fork lift related product in the form of the Professional Fork Wear Gauge.
For many years, the FB Chain Professional Chain Wear Gauge has been the world’s reference tool for forklift maintenance technicians and insurers engaged in the in-depth inspection of lifting equipment. Now this innovative company has turned its attentions to measuring the wear on the forks themselves.
Why do we need the Fork Wear Gauge?
Fork heels can wear over time leading to a significant reduction in capacity and potential fork failure. When a fork has reached its 10% wear limit it needs to be removed from service immediately. Traditionally competent persons or engineers would use a steel rule to measure the fork heel thickness albeit slightly inaccurately, or a go/no go gauge which would give a yes/no answer to whether the fork could be used or taken out of service. A vernier could be used but it involved lengthy complex calculations. The Professional Fork Wear Gauge neatly addresses these drawbacks presented by the traditional methods.
Instantly accurate measurements at last!
The Professional Fork Wear Gauge is simple to use and gives instant, accurate results in seconds. Just open the jaws at the top and close the teeth around the shank to verify the fork diameter which would be either 35, 40, 45 or 50mm. Then use the same process to measure the thickness of the blades. The built-in gauge will indicate the fork thickness in percentage (0 – 10%) increments flagging up if the wear exceeds the limit plus it lets the user see how much working life is remaining. The results are instant.
Invention and development
Like many innovations the Professional Fork Wear Gauge was born out of necessity. Matthew Kennedy, a Technical Manager from a forklift examining authority, was convinced that a better way of measuring fork wear could be developed, so he did. Once a design concept was finalised Matthew contacted FB Chain and, after several prototypes a workable gauge was produced. Test and evaluation took place on each prototype, always looking for the easiest tool for the competent person to use. The fact that simplicity is key was never lost sight of.
Notes to editors
All fork inspections must follow the requirements of the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations LOLER) 1998; the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations (PUWER) 1998; BITA Guidance Notes GN62(rev 2) and GN28(rev 5); FLTA Technical Bulletin TB12 and ISO 5057:1993.
If the fork is worn close to 10% wear, the competent person shall decide on timescales for replacement based on truck usage, working conditions and any other site critical factors.
FB Chain Ltd. is the UK arm of the FB Group, owned by Swedish company Addtech AB and is the UK and Ireland’s leading manufacturer and supplier of industrial chain. Based in Letchworth, Hertfordshire, FB Chain manufactures leaf chain, anchor bolts, pins and pulleys for the materials handling industry, often according to clients’ individual requirements. FB Chain is the only leaf chain manufacturer to be represented by UKHMA and employees are regular attendees at the esteemed BSI Technical Policy Committee meetings. FB Chain holds ISO 9001:2000 for the manufacture of chain and associated machined products