Buying Tips
When purchasing a forklift, there are actually a lot of factors to take into consideration because this decision could impact a lot of things like productivity, operating costs, equipment downtime, and even worker morale.
When you are thinking of choosing a brand new or second-hand lift truck, the following is a short list of factors to take into account. There are several specific questions the sales consultant must deal with to be able to help you choose the best alternative which is most suitable for your business.
Step 1: Identify Your Requirements
Identifying your requirements will ultimately help that you can find the best most capable forklift for your company. How large are your standard load sizes? Are they 3,000 pounds to 35,000 pounds or even heavier? How many hours every day would you be using this equipment? Will you be running the equipment outdoors or indoors or possibly both? How wide are your narrowest aisles to travel through? Correctly answering these questions will make sure that you are happy with the unit you choose.
Step2: Brand new Vs. Used Lift Trucks
You may want to buy a brand new model of lift truck if you are intending to utilize your forklift for more than 4 hours a day. The warranty benefits alone would really be handy. A second-hand alternative will more than likely be enough for light duty and infrequent applications.
Step 3: Fuel Options
The large electric forklift batteries would allow the lift truck to run for roughly 8 hours. These specific power sources make lift trucks uniquely suited for indoor application since they produce no harmful emissions. Even if electric models are usually more pricey than various other types of forklifts, they have less operating costs. Electric forklifts are much quieter to run and do not have fuel storage requirements to think about. Furthermore, these types of equipment have fewer moving components so they have a longer life span as they have less components to get worn down.
Among the disadvantages of the battery operated forklifts is that they need battery recharging posts and this can take about 8 hours. There is an added 8 hours required for cooling. Recent changes have made their way onto the market so as to significantly lessen charging time. The fast-charge technology has become a wonderful new thing.
Step 4: Tire Choice
Common lift trucks utilize cushion tires made up of solid rubber or they will be outfitted with pneumatic or air-filled, inflated tires. Several forklifts would use a solid pneumatic tires, which is a combination of the two types of tire. The pneumatic tire type is best suited for outdoor use. Cushion tires are best to be utilized indoors and solid pneumatic tires are the perfect alternative for hazardous work settings where there is potential for standard tires being popped by sharp objects on rough terrain.