Buying Tips
There are numerous factors to take into consideration when purchasing a lift truck. Choosing the right machinery could have a huge effect on everything from productivity to operating expenses, to equipment downtime and employee morale.
When you are thinking of choosing a new or second-hand forklift, the following is a short list of factors to take into account. There can be several specific questions the sales consultant must address in order to help you pick the best alternative that is right for your company.
Step 1: Identify Your Requirements
Making the time to identify your requirements will help ensure that you can find a capable equipment. What size are your typical loads? Are they 3,000 pounds to 35,000 pounds or even heavier? How many hours each day would you be using this machine? Will you be running the equipment indoors or outdoors or possibly both? How wide are your narrowest aisles to travel through? Answering these questions accurately would make certain that you are satisfied with the unit you choose.
Step2: Brand new Vs. Used Lift Trucks
You might want to buy a new unit of lift truck if you are planning to utilize your lift truck for more than 4 hours a day. The warranty benefits alone would really be handy. A used option will probably be enough for light duty and infrequent applications.
Step 3: Fuel Options
The large electric lift truck batteries would allow the forklift to run for around 8 hours. These particular power sources make forklifts uniquely suited for indoor use as they generate no harmful emissions. Though electric units are normally more expensive than other models, they have lower operating costs. Electric forklifts are much quieter to run and do not have fuel storage requirements to think about. As well, these machines have fewer moving components so they have a longer life span since they have fewer parts to get worn down.
One of the disadvantages of the battery operated lift trucks is that they need battery recharging posts and this could take roughly 8 hours. There is an added 8 hours needed for cooling. Recent innovations have made their way onto the market in order to significantly lessen charging time. The fast-charge technology has become a great new thing.
Step 4: Tire Choice
Lift Trucks are outfitted with either pneumatic or inflated, air-filled tires or cushion tires that are made up of solid rubber. There are actually also solid pneumatic tires which are a combination of the two. The pneumatic tire kind is best suited for outdoor applications. Cushion tires are great to be utilized indoors and solid pneumatic tires are the best option for hazardous work settings where there is potential for regular tires being popped by sharp objects on rough terrain.