The lift truck has been around ever since the early part of the 1920's. Since its inception, the forklift has become an indispensable machinery for the materials handling industry.
Sometimes referred to as lift trucks, one of their initial uses was lifting and transporting baggage at airports and train stations. During the Second World War using these machines exploded and the warehousing business expanded greatly. The traditional machine was adapted to deal with the requirements of stacking inventory on higher shelves and they were designed to move faster and lift heavier loads.
Normally, lift truck trucks are used for stacking inventory within warehouses. In the majority of cases, objects are packed onto pallets which make it ideal for the tines to move in between the open spaces of the pallets. The lift truck could then lift the cargo securely without it falling into the ground or wobbling. Once the pallets are in place, they could be transported easily to another location. Forklifts are also utilized much within the mining, agricultural, shipping and docking industry.
Forklifts are usually seen on construction sites. The manufacturers of these machinery make them to lift large heavy boxes and concrete slabs, heavy pipes, other equipment and ceramics. Because it is quite a compact unit, this machine can move from one location to a different location at a moderately good speed.
The dimensions of the forklift vary depending on the model and its particular application. For warehousing applications, there are the narrow aisle truck units. These need the floor to be extremely flat and are quite a bit smaller in size. Typically, they are made with rear wheel steering. There has been a dramatic increase in these machines in the mining and manufacturing machine businesses. As forklifts usually handle flammable materials, pharmaceuticals and petrochemicals, the machines have become more durable and stronger.
The forklifts may have load capacities from 1 to as many as 5 tons. Several heavy duty units have been designed to deal with as many as 50 tons. These units are often utilized to load shipping equipment onto and off of ships. Forklifts and their required training to operate are particularly regulated to ensure the safety of the individuals utilizing this specific equipment. No one could legally utilize them without finishing the correct training and documents.