Lift trucks are used within manufacturing, warehousing, material handling, construction and mining applications to lift, engage and transfer palletized loads. Forklifts have 3 basic types: a fork truck, manual drive and motorized drive. The load movement or travel is powered manually or by walking at the back of the machinery with manual-drive lift trucks.
The motorized forklift models come equipped with a motorized drive and in many cases have a protected cab or seat in their design in order to keep the operator comfortable and safe. Fork trucks are a different kind which are motorized and consist of features like for instance cabs and backup alarms. In order to prevent the vehicle from overturning, several lift trucks are counterbalanced. Other models comprise safety rails, a rotating element like for instance a turntable or other types of hand rails.
Important specifications to take into consideration when selecting forklifts consist of lift capacity and stroke. Stroke is defined as the difference between the fully-lowered and the fully-raised lift positions. Lift capacity is the maximum, supportable load or forcforce or load. Other specifications for forklifts include their type of fuel and tire.
Forklifts consist of different fuel options like: liquid propane or LPG, compressed natural gas or CNG, diesel fuel, propane, natural gas and gasoline. There are 2 basic types of tires used for operating forklifts and fork trucks: solid and pneumatic. Solid or cushion tires do not puncture and require less maintenance than pneumatic tires. The cushion or solid tires do offer less shock absorption in general. Pneumatic or air-inflated tires however provide great drive traction and load-cushioning.
There are 7 classes of forklifts. The first class of lift trucks, Class I, is either stand-up or seated 3 wheeled units which are electric-motor rider trucks. Usually, rider units are counterbalanced and could have either pneumatic or cushion wheels. Class II lift trucks are electric motor units which are utilized for order picking or stock applications in narrow aisle setting. These models provide extra swing mast or reach functions.
Forklift Class III lift trucks consist of walk-behind or standing-rider operated electric-motor trucks. High lift models and automated pallet lift trucks are usually counterbalanced units. Class IV lift trucks have cabs and seated controls. These kinds of forklifts are rider fork trucks with IC or internal combustion engines. Additionally, this class has solid or cushion tires.
Rider fork Trucks are included in Class V. These equipment will have seated controls and cabs, 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 that are designed for a sit-down rider. This particular class is supplied with IC or internal combustion or electric engines.
Lastly, Class VII forklifts are the perfect choice for use on rough terrain areas. They are a common feature in logging, agricultural and construction applications. Class VII lift trucks include all burden carriers and personnel carriers.