Forklifts are utilized in manufacturing, warehousing, construction, mining and material handling applications to raise, engage and transfer palletized loads. Lift trucks have 3 main kinds: a motorized drive, fork truck and manual drive. The travel or load movement is powered manually or by walking at the back of the equipment with manual-drive lift trucks.
The motorized forklift models come complete with a motorized drive and in a lot of cases have a protected cab or seat in their design to keep the operator comfortable and safe. Fork trucks are another type which are motorized and comprise features like for instance cabs and backup alarms. In order to prevent the vehicle from turning over, several lift trucks are counterbalanced. Other types of forklifts comprise safety rails, a rotating element like for instance a turntable or other types of hand rails.
Essential specifications to take into consideration when selecting forklifts comprise stroke and lift capacity. 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. Other specifications for forklifts include their tire and fuel type.
Forklifts comprise different fuel options like: liquid propane or LPG, compressed natural gas or CNG, diesel fuel, propane, gasoline and natural gas. There are 2 basic types of tires used for operating fork trucks and forklifts: solid and pneumatic. Solid or cushion tires need less maintenance than pneumatic tires and do not puncture. The solid or cushion tires do provide less shock absorption in general. Air-inflated or pneumatic tires however offer excellent load-cushioning and drive traction.
There are 7 classes of lift trucks. The first class of forklifts, Class I, is either stand-up or seated 3 wheeled units which are electric-motor rider trucks. Normally, rider units are counterbalanced and can have either cushion or pneumatic wheels. Class II forklifts are electric motor units that are used for order picking or stock applications in narrow aisle environments. These models offer extra reach functions or swing mast.
Forklift Class III lift trucks include walk-behind or standing-rider operated electric-motor trucks. High lift models and automated pallet lift trucks are often counterbalanced units. Class IV lift trucks have seated controls and cabs. These models are rider fork trucks with IC or internal combustion engines. In addition, this class utilizes cushion or solid tires.
Rider fork Trucks are included in Class V. These machines would have cabs and seated controls, pneumatic tires and IC or internal combustion engines. Like Class IV forklifts, they are typically counterbalanced. Class VI forklifts are tow tractor lifts that are designed for a sit-down rider. This class is supplied with electric or IC or internal combustion engines.
Class VII lift trucks are the last classification and consist of rough terrain forklifts, that are commonly used in construction, logging and agricultural applications. Class VII lift trucks include all personnel carriers and burden carriers.