Forklifts are used to lift, engage and transport palletized loads in warehousing, manufacturing, material handling, construction and mining applications. There are 3 basic types of forklifts: a fork truck, manual drive and motorized drive. The travel or load movement is powered manually or by walking behind the equipment with manual-drive forklifts.
The motorized forklift models come complete with a motorized drive and in a lot of cases have a seat or protected cab in their design in order to keep the operator comfortable and safe. Fork trucks are another kind that are motorized and comprise features like cabs and backup alarms. In order to prevent the machine from overturning, several forklifts are counterbalanced. Other models consist of safety rails, a rotating element such as a turntable or different kinds of hand rails.
When choosing forklifts, essential specifications to take into consideration include lift capacity and stroke. Stroke is defined as the difference between the fully-raised and the fully-lowered lift positions. Lift capacity is the maximum, supportable load or forcforce or load. Additional specifications for lift trucks include their tire and type of fuel.
Forklifts consist of different fuel options like: LP or liquid propane, compressed natural gas or CNG, diesel fuel, propane, natural gas and gasoline. There are 2 major types of tires for operating forklifts and fork trucks: pneumatic and solid. Solid or cushion tires do not puncture and require less maintenance than pneumatic tires. The solid or cushion tires do offer less shock absorption overall. Air-inflated or pneumatic tires on the other hand provide excellent drive traction and load-cushioning.
For forklifts, there are 7 classes. Class 1 forklifts include electric-motor rider trucks, seated or stand-up 3 wheeled units. Typically, rider units are counterbalanced and may have either pneumatic or cushion wheels. Class II forklifts are electric motor units that are used for stock applications or order picking in narrow aisle environments. These types of forklifts offer extra swing mast or reach functions.
Class III lift trucks are either walk-behind or standing-rider operated electric-motor trucks. Automated pallet lift trucks and high lift models are normally counterbalanced units. Class IV forklifts have cabs and seated controls. These models are rider fork trucks with internal combustion or IC engines. In addition, this class utilizes solid or cushion tires.
Rider fork Trucks are incorporated in Class V. These equipment will have cabs and seated controls, pneumatic tires and IC or internal combustion engines. Similar to Class IV forklifts, they are typically counterbalanced. Class VI lift trucks are tow tractor lifts which are designed for a sit-down rider. This class is supplied with electric or internal combustion or IC engines.
Finally, Class VII lift trucks are the ideal option for use on rough terrain areas. They are a common feature in agricultural, construction and logging applications. Class VII forklifts include all burden carriers and employee carriers.