Narrow Aisle Lift trucks
There are particularly designed forklifts which operate in narrow warehouse aisles. These machinery are usually referred to as narrow aisle or very narrow aisle forklifts. They can easily negotiate smaller aisles and enable you to enjoy some benefits. Like for example, the increased amount of area to keep stuff can really increase the overall available stock of a company.
Narrow aisle lift trucks can maneuver easily as well. These equipment have been particularly engineered to move without much space. Their different design has eliminated many of the items that are squished up into the design of the conventional lift truck's main body.
The disadvantage of narrow aisle forklifts is that they are very slow in comparison to regular forklifts. Narrow aisle forklifts would not work if you need to transport items across long distances. In terms of speed they will not be a reliable alternative. If you also have a standard lift truck, this will not be an issue. You could just use the narrow aisle lift truck to move the load to a central place and after that hand it off to a regular lift truck which could travel the bulk of the distance in a timely and efficient way. Commonly, narrow aisle forklifts cannot handle as much lifting weight; therefore, outside of smaller loads they will not be very useful.
Electric Lift Trucks
Conventional gas forklifts are not a suitable choice for indoor operations such as stores or warehouses. They will not be as safe because of their fumes, or as helpful or cost-efficient compared to an electric powered unit. Electric forklifts are usually engineered to work and look a lot like gas ones, but they use electric batteries which have to be recharged, rather than gasoline fuel.
Electric forklifts are common for a variety of reasons. For starters, they will save you lots of money on fuel costs. At first, electric units might cost more but over time, they make up for this in the long run. Like for example, when gas prices go up, you will not be affected and will save a lot of cash. Electric models tend to last quite a bit longer than gas powered models too. This is partially because of the fact they are mainly utilized indoors and hence don't get as dirty or work in as harsh settings as the gas powered units. Electric units are healthier to utilize in areas which are poorly ventilated like indoor applications and warehouses because they don't emit noxious fumes. It can be really dangerous to use gas or diesel lift trucks indoors.
Amongst the main disadvantages to electric lift trucks is the fact they could generally only work for one 8 hour shift before the battery needs to be charged for another shift. Numerous companies get around this condition by purchasing an extra battery so they could continually cycle them and have less downtime. There are fast charge batteries emerging on the market that are also reducing the charging time.