Forklift trucks have been around for many years. Since its inception, the lift truck has become an indispensable equipment for the materials handling industry.
Sometimes referred to as lift trucks, amongst their initial uses was lifting and moving luggage at airports and train stations. Throughout WWII using these machinery exploded and the warehousing business expanded greatly. The conventional machinery was adapted to deal with the requirement to stack inventory on higher shelves and they were designed to carry heavier cargo and move faster.
The forklift is usually utilized for stacking inventory within warehouses. Things for the most part are packed onto pallets that are made specially to allow the forks to move underneath the openings of the pallets. The lift truck can then securely carry the goods without it falling into the ground or wobbling. When the pallets are in place, they can be transported easily to another place. Lift trucks are also used much in the shipping, docking, agriculture and mining industry.
The forklift is also seen on constructions sites, as numerous units have been designed to lift huge heavy boxes and heavy pipes, concrete slabs, other equipment and ceramics. As it is fairly a compact unit, this equipment can move from one location to a different place at a fairly good speed.
The dimensions of the lift truck differ depending on the unit and its specific application. For warehousing applications, there are the narrow aisle truck units. These require the floor to be really flat and are quite a bit smaller in size. Typically, they are designed with rear wheel steering. There has been a significant increase in these equipment within the mining and manufacturing machine industries. Because forklifts often deal with pharmaceuticals and petrochemicals and flammable supplies, the machines have become more durable and tougher.
Lift trucks have a load capacity varying from 1 to 5 tons. There are heavy-duty models that could handle up to 50 tons. These units are normally used to load shipping equipment onto and off of ships. Lift trucks and their required training to operate are particularly regulated to ensure the safety of the people utilizing this particular equipment. No body can utilize them legally without finishing the correct documents and training.