It was during the beginning of the 20th Century when the very first lift trucks were launched. These machinery over the last 90 plus years has changed the material handling business and even the recycling industry. The considerations for safe use, the lift truck's evolution and the many different kinds are discussed below.
History of Lift Trucks
Powered industrial trucks are also called lift trucks and forklifts, were initially launched and invented in the latter part of the 19th Century. These first units were low lift trucks that could raise platforms just several inches high. Normally, these machines were used for moving supplies in a shop, like work-in-progress situations. During the late 1910s, high lift trucks initially emerged and improvements in truck design began to take root from there. The tier trucks ultimately developed and this allowed for better storage effectiveness and stacking of loads.
Throughout the 1930s, there were some really hard economic times. Then again, in this particular time, labor was freely available but capital for investment was more and more difficult to come by. This situation greatly slowed the growth of forklift usage.
Forklifts became a really strategic part of the World War II war effort because the vast shortages in manpower during that time occurred as a resulting of enlistment of thousands of men. It was found that its driver and the lift truck were extremely productive and could deal with the work of many men. As the War progressed, many women operators filled the many demands. When the war was over, lift trucks became a mainstay of the material handling business. They were used a lot in the Pacific war efforts. A few of the leftover pallets and lift trucks within Australia left behind by the U.S. Military became the basis for the Commonwealth Handling Equipment Pool or CHEP, who today is referred to as the world's biggest pallet pooling business.
Diesel/Gasoline
Gasoline and diesel engines have lots of advantages. They are always available all over the world; they deliver consistent power throughout the shift, they are great for heavy duty workloads and many operators are quite familiar with the source of power.
Some of the gas and diesel engines drawbacks comprise: they require a lot more maintenance than electric models, because of the emissions they release, they are not suitable to be used indoors, there is some difficulty and cost associated to disposal of oil and fluid and they need a re-fueling post on-site if they are going to be utilized always.