Forklift is an equipment used widely in the industrial field, such as warehouse, factory or construction site. However, there are many kinds of forklifts with various capacities and use scenarios. It will be beneficial to have a better understanding of forklifts before purchasing or renting.

Pallet Truck

Pallet truck can be divided into Electric Pallet forklift and manual pallet forklift. It is mainly used in the transfer of materials in pallet inside and outside the production line and warehouse. The pallet truck is only used for plane transportation for no lifting mast. Although the pallet truck cannot lift the goods, but the purchase and maintenance costs are quite lower than Other forklifts.

Fig1 Pallet Truck

Counter balanced forklift

Counter balanced forklift is one of the most widely used forklifts. The fork of counter balanced forklift is set outside the center line of front wheel. With the counterbalance installed at the tail, this forklift can easily overcome the weight of goods. The counter balanced forklift equipped with pneumatic tire to ensure operation speed and gradeability. It is widely used in loading, unloading, stacking and transporting finished goods in ports, stations and factory. Counterweight forklift within 3 tons can also operate in cabins, train compartments and containers.

Fig2 Counter balanced Forklift

Stacker

Stacker, or walkie stacker, is an industrial device for loading and lifting pallets on a shelf at high level. As an ideal choice to operate in short distance, it can be widely used in petroleum, chemical, pharmaceutical, textile, pigment, coal and other industries, as well as ports, railways, freight yards, warehouses. The stacker has a mast for lifting goods for flexible handling and stacking operations.

Fig3 Stacker

Reach stacker/truck

The reach stacker or truck is equipped with a fork that can move forward and backward. It has developed into several kinds: Double Deep Reach Truck, indoor and outdoor universal reach forklift and other special-purpose products for storing and storing long and wide pieces of goods. The Electric Reach Stacker/truck combines the advantages of counterbalance electric forklift and stacking truck, which has the characteristics of environmental protection, energy saving, low noise, high lifting and working in limited space.

Fig4 Reach Stacker/Truck

Order picker

Order picker is a lifting vehicle with a standing pedal installed on the inner sliding frame allowing the operator to pick the load from the load-bearing fixture onto the shelf. The operator can work on both sides of the forklift to pick the goods stored on the shelves on both sides. Order picker has small turning radius, which is suitable for narrow aisle and high-rise shelf warehouse.

Fig5 Order Picker

Please refer to some standard in order to pick the best forklift from all the different types:

1) Check the weight, length, width and height of the goods;

2) Check the lifting capacity and lifting height of forklift;

3) Check the operation conditions: ground bearing, slope, smoothness, aisle width as well as factory height limitation;

4) Other factors: operating temperature