It is quite key for several companies to examine the method of choosing a lift truck. Like for instance, will your company choose always the same unit for your dock work or warehouse? If this is so, you could be missing out on a more efficient forklift. There can be different other units on the market that enable more to get done because they offer less fatigue to operators. You might be able to take advantage of loading trailers in a more effective way. By doing some research and evaluation, you could determine if you have the right machine to meet your needs. By reducing operator exhaustion, you can drastically increase your performance.
When determining forklift units which deal with your specific concerns some of the key factors to consider could comprise:
Trailer Loading Frequency:
You probably won't need a pricey lift truck to complete jobs if your shipping and receiving department loads just a few semi-trailers or box trucks per week. An inexpensive walkie-rider or walkie unit would be able to deal with the task if: A 4500 to 6000 pound capacity is sufficient and you do not need to stack loads inside the trailer. Lastly, you need to 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 as the small load wheels should travel over the dock plate.
If on the other hand, your shipping facility is always 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 allow in-trailer stacking. These types of forklifts offer a model capacity range from 3000 to 4000 lbs.
Operator Duties:
Every company has a slightly different system for material handling. In certain circumstances, some forklift operators not just load trucks in the shipping department, but store inventory on racks, replenish the manufacturing line, handle the paperwork connected with the cargo, attach and scan bar codes and other tasks. Usually, the forklift operators who are constantly on and off of their lift trucks during their shifts find it much quicker and less tiring to exit a stand-up control model, rather than a sit down type.