When the time comes to select the right warehouse truck, it is a good idea to figure out how high you intend to lift your loads, how much you have to lift, how much space you need to work in and how far you want to travel. These considerations would truly influence your purchasing decision and help decipher which kind of forklift truck is the best one out there to suit your requirements and meet your overall expectations.
Normal Aisles
Pedestrian stackers are the most cost-effective as these machines are best utilized in standard width aisles and can complete ordinary warehouse stacking jobs. They are capable of easily lifting cargo of less than 750kg and can stack them to heights of about 4.5 metres. Another model called rider stackers can successfully raise cargo to around 6 metres.
Yet another choice to think about are reach trucks because they provide much greater lift and load capacities, whereas some models complete with telescopic forks. This characteristic enables you the ability of stacking 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 particularly suitable for handling long and large things like boards, piping and planks.
The counterbalance line of trucks is best for traveling longer distances. They are a good choice for stacking jobs, especially block stacking. They are also an ideal choice for stacking cargo which weigh more than 2 tonnes and free stacking.
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 likely be much higher. Man-up telescopic lift trucks function great in high-bay, narrow aisle stores. They provide the operator or driver a good view of the stacking process. There are other models called man-up combi trucks. These are quite versatile in that they could be used for both order- picking and stacking tasks. They could be used in narrow aisles or driven throughout the warehouse.