It was in the start of the 20th Century when the first lift trucks were introduced. These machines over the past 90 plus years has revolutionized the material handling industries and even the recycling industry. The factors for safe operation, the lift truck's evolution and the many different types are discussed below.
History of Forklifts
These powered industrial trucks, also referred to as lift trucks and forklifts, were invented and introduced to the market in the late 19th century. Initially, these models were low lift trucks that were just capable of raising platforms a few inches from the ground. Usually, these equipment were used for moving material in a shop, such as work-in-progress situations. During the late 1910s, high lift trucks first emerged and improvements in truck design began to take root from there. The tier trucks eventually evolved and this allowed for greater storage effectiveness and stacking of loads.
There were really hard economic times in the 1930s. Nonetheless, throughout this period, labor was freely available but capital for investment was increasingly more difficult to come by. This situation greatly slowed the growth of forklift usage.
Forklifts became a very strategic part of the the second World War war effort as the vast shortages in manpower during that time happened as a resulting of enlistment of thousands of men. It was found that its driver and the lift truck can deal with the work of many men and were really productive. As the War progressed, many women drivers filled the numerous demands. When the war was over, forklifts became a mainstay of the material handling business. They were utilized a lot in the Pacific war efforts. Several 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 referred to as the world's largest pallet pooling business.
Gasoline/Diesel
Gasoline and diesel engines have numerous advantages. They are readily available around the world; they deliver consistent power throughout the shift, they are perfect for heavy duty workloads and lots of operators are quite familiar with the source of power.
A few of the major drawbacks of diesel and gasoline units consist of: they require much more maintenance than electric models, because of the emissions they release, they are not suitable for indoor applications, there is some cost and difficulty connected to oil and fluid disposal and they need a re-fueling post on-site if they are going to be in continuous use.