It is quite important for some businesses to examine the method of selecting a lift truck. For instance, will your company choose always the same model for your dock work or warehouse? If this is so, you could be missing out on a more effective forklift. There could be other models available on the market which enable more to get accomplished because they offer less fatigue to operators. You may be able to take advantage of loading trailers in a more cost-effective manner. By doing some evaluation and research, you can determine if you have the right equipment to suit all your requirements. By reducing operator exhaustion, you could significantly increase your performance.
When determining forklift units that deal with your particular problems several of the important factors to consider can consist of:
Trailer Loading Frequency:
If your shipping department just loads out a few semi-trailers or box trucks a week, then you probably won't require a pricey forklift to complete the tasks. An inexpensive walkie-rider or walkie model will be able to deal with the task if: A 4500 to 6000 lb. capacity is sufficient and you are not required to stack loads inside the trailer. Lastly, you must think about whether or not the transition from the dock floor to the dock leveler and into the trailer is not too jarring for the operator since the small load wheels have to travel over the dock plate.
If on the other hand, your shipping facility is consistently loading trailers, than a stand-up end control will make more sense over a walkie model or a walkie-rider. These battery-powered forklifts easily fit into a standard 108 inch trailer door. Their masts enable in-trailer stacking. These kinds of forklifts offer a model capacity range from 3000 to 4000 pounds.
Operator Duties:
For material handling needs, each business has a slightly different system. Some forklift operators will usually unload and load products in the shipping department along with storing objects on inventory racks, handle the paperwork associated with the loads, replenish the manufacturing line, scan and attach bar codes and other jobs. Usually, 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 model, rather than a sit down kind.