Forklifts
In material handling, construction, manufacturing and warehousing operation, forklifts are normally used to transport and lift palletized loads. With manual-drive forklifts, the travel or load movement is either walk-behind or manually powered. Motorized drive forklifts have a motorized drive. In numerous models, the forklift has a protected cab or seat for the operator. Fork trucks include features like cabs, and backup alarms and are additionally motorized. Some models of forklifts are counterbalanced in order to prevent the vehicle from tipping over. Other kinds of forklifts are offered with safety rails, or a rotating element like a turntable or a hand rail.
Other factors which are important to consider when choosing a forklift are the lift capacity and stroke. Lift capacity is defined as the supportable, maximum load or force. Stroke is defined as the difference between fully raised and fully lowered lift positions.
The type of tire and the type of fuel are also other key specifications that must be considered. The available fuel choices include: natural gas, LP or liquid propane, electricity, compressed natural gas or CNG, gasoline, propane or diesel.
There are two basic kinds of tires utilized for fork trucks and forklifts: solid and pneumatic. The solid or cushion tires need less maintenance than pneumatic tires and do not easily puncture. Pneumatic or air-inflated tires provide great drive traction and load-cushioning. At the end of the day, solid or cushion tires provide less shock absorption.
Normally utilized on rough terrain are Class VII forklifts. These kinds of equipment are often utilized in construction, agriculture and in logging environments. Lastly, Class VIII forklifts have all personnel and burden carriers. Dual Fuel lift trucks frequently fit in this class.