Safety Switches for Forklifts and Telehandlers

John Crozier / April 16th, 2016

In the world of material handling equipment, operator safety is probably one of the more critical design considerations. With Forklifts and Telehandlers that are moving tons of sheetrock, cinder-block or other materials you don’t really want that to land on somebody. Or run them over while you’re moving it around. That would be bad.

Switch Applications for Forklifts and Telehandlers

There are a number of safety systems present in Forklifts and Telehandlers for which CPI waterproof switch products often get selected. Since these specialized vehicles often operate outdoors in less than ideal conditions on construction sites, a tough and durable switch is essential to both equipment uptime, and job safety.

Neutral Safety Switch

The job of a neutral safety switch is to insure that you can’t start a vehicle be it an automobile or a forklift, while the vehicle is in gear. If you allowed that, the vehicle could suddenly lurch forward causing instability of payload and injury to anyone standing too close. On a forklift or telehandler, the neutral safety switch is typically screwed into the valve body on top of the transmission. As such it can be subject to the hot temperatures of the transmission block and valve assembly.

For this application our J4001 ball switch is often used owing to its highly robust all stainless steel design, and its qualification for extreme electromechanical endurance. At the heart of the J4 is a patented ball carrier design which prevents contaminates such as mud, dirt, ice, sand, dust, etc. from jamming the ball. Furthermore the switches are completely submersible and are unaffected by water, salt spray, humidity, dirt, dust, sand, icing, oil, shock and vibration.

Back Up Alarm Switch

If you’ve ever spent any time in a warehouse or on a construction site, you’ve for sure heard that loud annoying beeping sound whenever a lift moves backwards. That doesn’t happen without the engagement of a switch like our E1078 Waterproof Limit Switch. Our switch is mechanically enganged when the lift moves backward and handles the full current load required by most horns, up to 15A rated load available.

Stop Switch

An emergency stop switch is a staple of the non-automotive vehicular class of equipment providing immediate cessation of power to key drive systems in an emergency. CPI switches like our B2003 Normally Open pushbutton are 100% waterproof solutions that can be mounted in panels or dashboards anywhere on the vehicle. These pendant style switches come in a full assortment of styles to fit any set of engineering requirements. Electrical ratings, pole configuration, current rating, button height and more can be specified.  Electromechanical endurance ratings up to 5 million cycles has been achieved.

CPI Waterproof Switch Customization

CPI solutions for the non-automotive vehicular market are widespread but share a common desire by manufacturers for tough, reliable and long lasting solutions. All our switches are designed and built in the USA and can be customized to your specific needs.

Call us today to discuss your application.