A telescopic handler is like a forklift. It has a single telescopic boom which extends upwards and forwards from the truck, and a counterweight located within the back. It functions a lot more like a crane than a forklift. The boom could be equipped with various kinds of attachments. The most popular attachment is pallet forks, but the operator could also attach a lift table, bucket or muck grab. Also called a telehandler, this type of equipment is commonly used in agriculture and industry.
A telehandler is most frequently employed to move loads to and from areas which would be hard for a standard forklift to access. Telehandlers are commonly used to unload pallets from inside a trailer. They are also more practical than a crane for lifting loads onto rooftops and other high areas.
There is only one major limitation in using telehandlers. Even with rear counterweights, the weight-bearing boom can cause the machine to destabilize as it extends. Thus, the lifting capacity lessens as the distance between the center of the load and the front of the wheels increases.
Telehandlers were developed in England by the Matbro company. Their design was based on articulated cross country forklifts utilized in forestry. Early models had a driver's cab on the back section and a centrally mounted boom on the front, but these days the most common design has a strong chassis with a side cab and rear mounted boom.