Fork Lift

When it comes time to buy a forklift or expand on an existing vehicle fleet, the many choices available can sometimes present a daunting decision. However, the flexibility in available new and used forklift models means that the equipment purchased can be tailored to job tasks and work sites. Let’s explore an overview of the choices that are available when in the market to buy a forklift.

Create a Requirements Checklist

Take a careful look and perform a thorough analysis of the work that a lift needs to perform. Ask these questions in particular and develop a checklist of requirements:

•What materials will this vehicle be handling, such as furniture, pipes, or cartons? Is it loaded on pallets, handling individually, and are they stackable?

•What kind of storage module will you be loading on? Does the warehouse have single-deep racks, double-deep racks, push-back racks, flow-through racks, or a combination of these types?

•What is the aisle spacing? This can range from 9.5 feet for a regular reach truck to 12 feet for a counter-balanced lift.

•What weight capacity should a lift be able to handle? New and used forklifts can handle anywhere from 3,000 pounds to 35,000 pounds.

•How high are items being stacked? How much reach must a lift have?

Matching The Right Type Of Lift Trucks

With a list of requirements in hand, it’s time to evaluate the many different new and used forklift options and how they can meet your needs.

A standard truck, or counterbalanced sit-down truck, is what you will find in most warehouses. The common models are best suited for loads up to two tons and can reach up to 20 feet, but heavy duty models can handle heavier loads as well.

A reach truck is a narrow aisle vehicle that is designed to handle pallets. These machines have a set of outriggers and telescoping forks that allows a driver to pick up and tract pallets. As a result, the tines are not designed for heavy loads or for moving materials quickly, but can reach up to 40 feet.

Motorized pallet trucks are less complex material handlers that the operator walks along side of or stands on a small platform to drive. Their compact size is ideal for moving loads in small areas and also for longer distance traveling.

An order selector, or order picker, is a very narrow aisle truck that elevates both a load and an operator up to 40 feet. It is designed for racked loads that are much smaller than a pallet in size.

Swing-mast and turret trucks are very narrow aisle machines that resemble a standard truck, but they have masts that can be swung in 90 degrees. Turret trucks can perform this maneuver in both directions, swing-mast models only in one direction. They are ideal for shifting materials laterally in extremely short times.

In general, many models can have narrow aisle and very narrow aisle features. This cuts down on warehouse wasted space and allows a higher storage density. The vehicles can turn at 90 degrees but have a lower capacity limit as a tradeoff.

In the end, when you buy a forklift, whether it be a new or used forklift, you’ll get the most for your money when you carefully match the right vehicle to the right job.

Author is a freelance copywriter. For more information about a used forklift, please visit http://www.buyandsellaforklift.com/BecomeAMember.

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