It was during the start of the 20th Century when the first forklifts were launched. These equipment during the past 90 plus years has revolutionized the material handling business and even the recycling business. The factors for safe operation, the lift truck's evolution and the many different kinds are discussed below.
History of Lift Trucks
These powered industrial trucks, also known as lift trucks and forklifts, were invented and introduced to the market during the latter part of the 19th century. Initially, these units were low lift trucks which were only capable of raising platforms several inches high. Usually, these equipment were utilized for transporting material within a shop, such as work-in-progress situations. In the late 1910s, high lift trucks initially emerged and improvements in truck design began to take root from there. The tier trucks ultimately evolved and this allowed for better storage efficiency and stacking of loads.
During the 1930s, there were some extremely tough economic times. Then again, during this period, labor was freely available but capital for investment was more and more difficult to come by. This situation really slowed the growth of forklift usage.
During World War II, lift trucks became a strategic part of the war effort. During that era, vast shortages in manpower happened resulting from the wartime enlistment. It was discovered that a lift truck and its driver were very productive and can deal with the work of many men. As the War progressed, many women drivers filled the many 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 lift trucks in Australia left behind by the U.S. Military became the basis for the Commonwealth Handling Equipment Pool or CHEP, who today is known as the largest pallet pooling business in the world.
Gasoline/Diesel
There are many advantages to utilizing a diesel or gas powered engine. They are always available all around the world; they are suitable for heavy duty workloads, they deliver consistent power throughout the shift and lots of operators are quite familiar with the source of power.
Several of the gas and diesel engines disadvantages consist of: they require much more maintenance than electric models, because of the emissions they release, they are not suitable to be utilized inside, there is some cost and difficulty associated to disposal of fluid and oil and they need a re-fueling station on-site if they are going to be in continuous use.