It is quite important for several businesses to examine the process of selecting a lift truck. Like for example, will your business choose always the same model for your warehouse or dock work? If this is so, you could be missing out on a more efficient forklift. There could be other units on the market which allow more to get accomplished since they offer less fatigue to operators. You might be able to take advantage of loading trailers in a more effective way. By doing some evaluation and research, you could determine if you have the right equipment to suit your requirements. By reducing operator exhaustion, you can significantly increase your performance.
When determining forklift models which deal with your particular problems several of the important factors to think about can comprise:
Trailer Loading Frequency:
You probably won't require an expensive forklift to complete tasks if your shipping and receiving department loads only a few box trucks or semi-trailers a week. An inexpensive walkie unit or walkie-rider will be able to handle the job if: A 4500 to 6000 pound capacity is adequate and you do not need to stack loads inside the trailer. Last of all, you have to consider whether or not the transition to the dock leveler from the dock floor and into the trailer is not too jarring for the operator as the small load wheels must travel over the dock plate.
If your shipping facility is consistently loading trailers however, a stand-up end control unit may make more sense over a walkie-rider or a walkie model. These battery-powered forklifts fit into a standard 108 inch trailer door with no trouble. Their masts allow in-trailer stacking. These forklifts offer a model capacity range from 3000 to 4000 pounds.
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, attach and scan bar codes and other tasks. Generally, the forklift operators who are constantly on and off of their forklifts in their shifts find it less tiring and much quicker to exit a stand-up control model, as opposed to a sit down type.