It is quite key for several businesses to examine the process of choosing a lift truck. Like for instance, would your company choose consistently the same model for your warehouse or dock work? If this is so, you could be missing out on a more efficient forklift. There might be various other models on the market that offer less exhaustion to operators and enable more to get done. You might be able to take advantage of loading trailers in a more effective way. By doing some evaluation and research, you can determine if you have the best machinery to meet your requirements. By reducing operator fatigue, you can significantly increase your performance.
Some of the key factors to think about when determining forklift models that address specific concerns include:
Trailer Loading Frequency:
You probably won't require an expensive forklift to accomplish jobs if your shipping and receiving department loads just a few semi-trailers or box trucks a week. A cheaper walkie-rider or walkie model will be able to deal with the task if: You do not need to stack loads inside the trailer, and a 4500 to 6000 lb. capacity is sufficient. Last of all, you must consider whether or not the transition from the dock floor to the dock leveler and into the trailer is not too jarring for the operator because the small load wheels need to travel over the dock plate.
If on the other hand, your shipping facility is always loading trailers, than a stand-up end control would make more sense over a walkie model or a walkie-rider. These battery-powered forklifts fit into a standard 108 inch trailer door with no trouble. Their masts enable in-trailer stacking. These forklifts provide a model capacity range from 3000 to 4000 lbs.
Operator Duties:
Every company has a slightly different system for material handling. In certain circumstances, several forklift operators not just load trucks in the shipping department, but store inventory on racks, replenish the manufacturing line, handle the paperwork connected with the loads, scan and attach bar codes and other tasks. Normally, the forklift operators who are always on and off of their forklifts in their shifts find it a lot faster and less tiring to exit a stand-up control unit, rather than a sit down kind.