Narrow Aisle Lift trucks
Several lift trucks are particularly designed to fit down very narrow aisles in a warehouse. These models are known as narrow aisle forklifts. They could easily negotiate smaller aisles and enable you to enjoy several advantages. For instance, the increased amount of area to store objects could really increase a company's overall available stock.
The narrow aisle forklift is made to maneuver rather easily, as they are designed specially to operate in confined areas. Their different design has eliminated a lot of the items which are squished up into the main body of the conventional forklift design.
These forklifts are very slow in comparison to regular lift trucks which is among their key disadvantages. If you have to move items across large areas, the narrow aisle forklift is not the best. In terms of speed they will not be a reliable choice. If you also have a standard lift truck, this will not be an issue. You can simply use the narrow aisle forklift to move the load to a central site and after that hand it off to a standard lift truck that could travel the bulk of the distance in an efficient and timely way. Usually, narrow aisle lift trucks cannot handle as much lifting weight; hence, outside of smaller loads they would not be really effective.
Electric Forklifts
Conventional gas lift trucks are not a suitable option for indoor use like warehouses or stores. They will not be as safe due to their fumes, or as cost-efficient or helpful than an electric powered unit. Electric lift trucks are normally engineered to work and look a lot like gas ones, but they rely on electric batteries that have to be recharged, instead of gasoline fuel.
Electric forklifts are common for a variety of reasons. For starters, they would save you lots of money on fuel costs. At first, electric models might cost more but eventually, they make up for this in the long run. Like for instance, when gas prices go up, you would not be affected and will save a lot of cash. Electric units tend to last quite a bit longer than gas powered units too. This is partially due to the fact they are mostly utilized indoors and therefore don't get as dirty or work in as harsh environments as the gas powered ones. Electric models are healthier to use in areas that are badly ventilated like warehouses and indoor applications since they don't emit noxious fumes. It can be very dangerous to use gas or diesel lift trucks inside.
One of the main disadvantages to electric lift trucks is the fact they can generally only work for one 8 hour shift before the battery has to be charged for another shift. Many companies get around this situation by buying an extra battery so they could continually cycle them and have less downtime. There are fast charge batteries available on the market which are also minimizing the charging time.