When the time comes to select the proper warehouse truck, it is a great idea to figure out how high you intend to raise your loads, how much you have to raise, how much space you need to work in and how far you would like to travel. These factors would really influence your buying decision and help decipher what type of forklift truck is the best one out there to suit your requirements and meet your overall expectations.
Normal Aisles
The most economical trucks are pedestrian stackers. These equipment are great for working in normal width aisles and completing regular stacking tasks inside a warehouse. They could easily lift cargo of less than 750kg and be able to stack them to heights of around 4.5 metres. A different model known as rider stackers can successfully raise loads to around 6 metres.
Reach trucks are yet a different option to think about. They give you much greater lift and load capacities and some models come complete with telescopic forks. This characteristic allows you the ability to stack pallets two deep. For added flexibility in goods handling, there is a 4-way and a multi-way reach truck that as the name implies, can be driven in four directions. These models are specifically best for handling large and long items like for example boards, piping and planks.
The counterbalance line of trucks is suitable for traveling longer distances. They are a great alternative for stacking jobs, specially block stacking. They are also a great alternative for free stacking and stacking loads that weigh over 2 tonnes.
A Tight Squeeze
If you are working in a high-density storage operation, the aisle space would usually be a lot narrower and the heights you would want to reach to will possibly be much higher. Man-up telescopic lift trucks work well in high-bay, narrow aisle stores. They provide the driver or operator a good view of the stacking process. There are also kinds called man-up combi trucks. These are fairly versatile in that they can be used for both stacking and order-picking jobs. They could be used in narrow aisles or driven throughout the warehouse.