Forklift Trucks

About Forklift Trucks and Forklift Trucks Manufacturers Including: Fork Lift Trucks, Forklift Manufacturers, Lift Trucks, Pallet Trucks, Platform Trucks, Reach Trucks & Sideloaders.

Forklift trucks are an industrial vehicle used to lift and move heavy products, items and packaged pallets. Fork lift trucks, also known as lift trucks, have a power operated forked platform attached to the front designed to be inserted under loads to lift and move them. Fork lift trucks are used in almost every industry which handles heavy items or large quantities, such as in warehousing and distribution. They are particularly useful in storerooms, construction sites and loading docks. Forklift trucks are used both indoor and outdoor, on factory floors or in large cooling units. Heavy duty applications often require sideloaders, while warehouses with high shelves utilize reach trucks to access products and equipment. Using a forklift truck in most industrial or commercial situations improves storage potential, reduces risk of injury and cuts stocking time.

Pallet trucks are a type of lift truck designed specifically for the lifting of loaded pallets. Their forks have specific dimensions which fit a variety of pallet designs, and some forklift manufacturers make pallet trucks with adjustable forks. Reach trucks are equipped with hydraulic lifting systems capable of raising their platforms to reach pallets and items on high warehouse shelves. Sideloaders, typically used in more heavy-duty applications, have a lifting platform which extends from the side instead of from the front or back. Other forklift trucks are designed to maneuver down narrow aisles. Straddle trucks are a type of forklift truck which have wider bases in order to lift a heavy load higher than normal forklift trucks can, while turret forklift trucks can rotate a high load up to a 90 degree angle. Platform trucks are a material handling vehicle composed of a simple wheeled flat bed with either a bar handle for manual transportation or a motor, steering wheel and seat. Although not technically lift trucks, platform trucks are used in applications similar to forklift trucks.

Fork lift trucks are designed with either internal combustion engines or electric motors. Hydraulic systems are used for lifting power in most forklift trucks, although some companies have developed electric actuator controlled lifts. A few common forklift truck features include tilting and rotating frames and wheels to increase the vehicles' overall maneuverability and efficiency. Some wheels also may be fitted with stabilizing outriggers. The forklifts themselves may have safety rails installed around the lifting fork to minimize the risk of a load sliding or falling off. Safety features, such as flashing lights or audible sirens, are common features which help keep co-workers aware of the vehicles' movement and presence in order to avoid injury and product loss.
 
Forklift truck manufacturers divide their products into specific classes of design and capacity. These classes primarily depend on the type of engine and tires that are used. Cushion/solid tires do not need air inflation, and, as a result, puncture less easily and require less monitoring and significantly less maintenance than pneumatic tires. On the other hand, pneumatic tires give load padding and allow for increased traction. Another factor in the classification of forklift trucks is the nature of counterbalance in the vehicle. Counterbalancing uses specifically placed weights to prevent the lift from toppling over under the weight of a load. This method is far more convenient than the other alternative of placing supports under the loads. Important factors to consider when exploring forklift trucks options are vertical lift travel and lift capacity. Vertical lift travel is the height to which a forklift or reach truck can extend, while lift capacity refers to the largest weight capable of being handled by the lift. Vehicle performance is directly affected by these factors.
 

Forklift Trucks and Forklift Trucks Manufacturers Images Provided by The Raymond Corporation

Forklift Trucks and Forklift Trucks Manufacturers Image Provided by Yale Materials Handling Corp.

Forklift Truck Types

• Class I forklifts are rider trucks, either stand-up operator or seated three-wheel units, with an electric motor. They usually are counterbalanced with cushion or pneumatic wheels.
• Class II forklifts are electric motor vehicles used in narrow aisle or inventory stock picking functions and may include extra reach or swing mast options.
  
• Class III forklifts are vehicles with a walk-behind or standing rider controller and have electric motors. They are commonly automated pallet lift trucks and high lift models, and are usually offset.
  
• Class IV forklifts are vehicles with cabs and seated controls for a rider, and they have internal combustion engines.
  
• Class V forklifts are rider fork vehicles that feature cabs and seated controls and have internal combustion engines. They are usually equipped with pneumatic tires. They are often counterbalanced.
  
• Fork lift trucks are industrial vehicles used to lift and move heavy loads.
• Fork lift manufacturers make the vehicles used to lift heavy loads.
• Lift trucks are used to lift heavy loads and move large quantities.
• Manual drive forklifts manually move the load and are controlled by a person walking behind the lift.
  
• Motorized drive forklifts include a cab or seat for the driver to operate the vehicle while riding in it. This is useful for larger travel distances.
  
• Narrow aisle trucks are vehicles that can operate in aisles typically 8 to 10 feet clear. There are also very narrow aisle trucks, which operate in clear aisles of about 5 feet.
  
• Pallet trucks are common and outfitted for specific use with pallets in storage, warehouse and manufacturing settings.
  
• Platform trucks have a load platform intended to pick up and deposit a customer's specific type of skid.
• Reach Trucks are industrial vehicles used to lift and move pallet loads from racks housed in narrow aisles.
• Side loaders are equipped to reach forward to pick up or deposit long, heavy loads or pallets and are able to work in very narrow aisles.
  
• Straddle trucks are high-lift trucks with a wide baseleg opening so they can straddle a pallet and employ the load.
  
• Turret trucks are a counterbalanced truck with a high lift and a rotatable elevating mechanism able to transport and tier a load. They are able to move to storage at right angles.

Forklift Truck Terms

ANSI B56.1 - American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) standard of safety for low-lift and high-lift trucks, approved by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).
 
Axle Weight - The distribution of the load to the wheel axles in a weighed down or unloaded condition.
 
Baseleg Opening - Measurement between the inside of the baselegs, from the narrowest point.
 
Batching - A compilation of several orders zoned for optimum pick rate, which are sorted at a centralized location.
 
Bi-directional - The term given to a vehicle, which is equipped for forward and reverse travel.
 
Carriage - A support structure for forks or attachments, generally roller mounted, which travels vertically within the mast of a fork truck.
 
Carts - Used to hold or transport items selected to fill an order condition, often customized to meet particular needs.
 
Carton Clamp - Hydraulic operated blade attachment that is fitted to forklift trucks and allows handling of cartons without the use of pallets.
 
Deck - One or more boards comprising the top or bottom exterior of a pallet.
 
Drivers Cabin - Protects the driver of a forklift truck from weather conditions when outdoors or in a cooler or freezer or falling elements indoors.
 
Dwell Time - Total stop time spent at pick front.
 
Forks - Horizontal projections suspended from the carriage to support loads.
 
Load Center Horizontal - The distance, horizontally, from the fork face and fork heel intersection, to the center of gravity of the load.
 
Load Center Vertical - The distance, vertically, from the carrying surface of the fork to the center of gravity of the load.
 
Load Wheel - Referring to reach and straddle trucks, those wheels that are located in the baselegs.
 
Lowering Speed - The velocity in FPM of the lowering load carriage in its operating range, for loaded and empty conditions.
 
Module - The device or container objects are deposited in or on by the one who picks.
 
Outside Turning Radius - Half the diameter of a circle made by the outermost projection of the truck.
 
Pallet - A carrying structure to support loads with stringers and decks with openings to allow pick up by a fork truck.
 
Pick - The process of locating, counting and retrieving an item for transportation to another area or for customer retrieval.
 
Rail - Part of a larger side guidance system used for forklift trucks. It also absorbs vehicle weights.
 
Reverse Steer - A steering option resulting in the vehicle turning to the right when steering wheel is turned counterclockwise and the operator is facing opposite the direction of the forks.
 
Sideshift - A very common lift truck attachment. The sideshift device allows the fork carriage to slide left and right to allow more precise placement of a cargo.  
 
Skid - A pallet having no bottom deck.
 
Stringer - Continuous, longitudinal, solid or notched beam section of the pallet used to support deck components, often recognized by location as the outside or center stringer.
 
Underwriters Laboratory Listing (UL) - A list of truck models that is used by insurance companies to determine the rates for coverage. The Underwriter's Laboratories is an independent testing agency.
 
Wheel Loading - The measurement of the effect the truck axle loading has on the floor it operates on. The two types of it are: Force (concentrated reaction per tire, in pounds, exerted by wheel on the floor) and P.S.I. (the wheel loading, in pounds, divided by the wheel contact area in square inches).