Lift trucks were launched onto the market during the start of the 20th Century. These equipment have played a tremendously powerful part in the recycling business and have also revolutionized the material handling industry. The considerations for safe operation, the forklift's evolution and the various different types are discussed below.
History of Forklifts
Powered industrial trucks are also called forklifts and lift trucks, were originally launched and created during the latter part of the 19th Century. These first models were low lift trucks which were capable of raising platforms just a few inches from the ground. Usually, these kinds of machinery were used for transporting supplies within a shop, such as work-in-progress situations. In the late 1910s, high lift trucks initially emerged and truck design enhancements started to take root from there. The tier trucks eventually evolved and this allowed for better storage effectiveness and stacking of loads.
There were really hard economic times in the 1930s. Nonetheless, in this specific time, labor was freely available but capital for investment was increasingly harder to come by. This situation really slowed the growth of lift truck usage.
In WWII, forklifts became a strategic part of the war effort. In that era, vast shortages in manpower occurred resulting from the wartime enlistment. It was found that a lift truck and its operator could deal with the work of many men and were really productive. As the War continued, many women drivers filled the numerous demands. When the war was over, forklifts 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 forklifts in Australia left behind by the U.S. Military became the basis for the CHEP or Commonwealth Handling Equipment Pool, who today is known as the world's biggest pallet pooling business.
Diesel/Gasoline
There are many advantages to utilizing a diesel or gas powered engine. They are always available all over the world; they are great for heavy duty workloads, they deliver consistent power throughout the shift and numerous operators are quite familiar with the source of power.
Several of the diesel and gas engines disadvantages include: they need much more maintenance compared to electric units, due to the emissions they release, they are not appropriate to be utilized inside, there is some cost and difficulty associated to oil and fluid disposal and they require a re-fueling station on-site if they are going to be utilized always.