Electric forklift models make up almost 60 percent of the lift truck market. These units are powered by big, heavy lead-acid batteries that give the machine it's counterweight so as to prevent it from tipping over.
According to the ITA, electric counterbalanced lift trucks are considered Class 1 forklifts. Class 1 is the category that includes all stand-up counterbalanced trucks and other electric forklifts. Even if the first investment when you buy an electric forklift is more than an IC or internal combustion truck, electric forklifts are less expensive to run and operate in the long-run. This is because of lower fuel and maintenance costs, compared to the IC models.
The majority of the electric rider forklift trucks shipped within North America is made for transporting material indoors. They are usually used in warehousing applications, and retail spaces. The electric models are the best choice for inside use due to their ability to make less noise and emit zero toxic emissions.
Additionally, electric lift truck could generally run a complete 8 hour shift on one battery charge. Reloading, recharging and removing batteries, that roughly weigh about 3000 pounds can be time consuming and hard. This burdensome job often requires a dedicated space for battery handling. Then again, new fast charging technologies are now utilized to change the procedure and update this method to be able to complete it in a a lot faster way.
Fast charging technologies are considered the best charging technologies. It has changed electric unit lift trucks and the charging time of their batteries. The professionals of the material handling industry, state that these new developments in the battery charging systems and battery technology can lessen charging time by as much as 50%!
Internal Combustion or IC Counterbalanced Forklifts
IC lift trucks depend on a range of different types of fuels, like liquid propane gas or LPG, diesel, CNG or compressed natural gas and gasoline. The bigger lift trucks are usually utilized outside. Usually, these units operate on gas or diesel and uses pneumatic or air-filled tires in order to make them appropriate for steep inclines and rough environment, as opposed to cushion tires. Cushion tires are more suitable for indoor use and smooth services as they are made from solid rubber.
The most popular fuel option for indoor trucks is LPG. There are over 600,000 propane-filled forklifts nowadays that are operating within DCs and within warehouses. These units provide numerous advantages. For example, propane-fueled forklifts maintain 100 percent constant power during operation. In addition, these models offer faster ground speeds than other power sources.