Narrow Aisle Forklifts
There are especially made forklifts that operate in narrow warehouse aisles. These machines are often known as vary narrow aisle or narrow aisle lift trucks. They can negotiate smaller aisles easily and enable you to enjoy some advantages. For example, the increased amount of space to store objects could significantly increase the overall available stock of a business.
The narrow aisle forklift is made to maneuver rather easily, since they are designed specifically to operate in tight areas. Their unique design has eliminated many of the items that are squished up into the main body of the traditional forklift design.
The disadvantage of narrow aisle forklifts is that they are really slow in comparison to regular forklifts. Narrow aisle forklifts will not work if you need to transport items across large distances. In terms of speed they would not be a dependable alternative. If you also have a regular lift truck, this would not be a problem. You could just use the narrow aisle lift truck to transport the load to a central site and after that hand it off to a standard lift truck that can travel the bulk of the distance in an efficient and timely method. Frequently, narrow aisle forklifts cannot handle as much lifting weight; hence, outside of smaller loads they would not be really effective.
Electric Lift Trucks
For indoor applications such as stores or inside warehouses, conventional gas lift trucks are not a suitable alternative. They will not be as safe because of their fumes, or as useful or cost-efficient compared to an electric powered model. Electric forklifts are normally engineered to function and look a lot like gas ones, but they depend on electric batteries which need to be recharged, instead of gasoline fuel.
The electrically powered forklift has become more common and for a range of reasons. These machinery could help businesses save expenses on fuel. Electric models will initially cost more, but will eventually save you more over time. Like for instance, when gas prices go up, you will not be affected and would save lots of cash. Electric models tend to last quite a bit longer than gas powered units too. This is partly because of the fact they are mainly utilized inside and thus don't get as dirty or work in as harsh environments as the gas powered ones. Electric units are healthier to use in badly ventilated places like indoor operations and warehouses because they don't emit noxious fumes. It can be very dangerous to utilize diesel or gas lift trucks indoors.
One of the main downsides to electric lift trucks is the fact they could normally just work for one 8 hour shift before the battery needs to be charged for another shift. A lot of businesses get around this condition by buying an extra battery so they can have less downtime and continually cycle them. There are fast charge batteries available on the market which are also reducing the charging time.