Picking the right forklift for your warehouse or production facility requires a lot of insight if you want to find the most cost-effective and productive machine. Besides power source, you’ll be evaluating a wide range of factors which will affect your long-term costs, including how much the forklift will be able to lift and how careful the operators will need to be when manoeuvring loads in sensitive areas. With the many technological advancements and ergonomic designs available, even the smallest adjustments can make a huge difference in the productivity and cost-effectiveness of your operations.
Besides picking the right forklift, another incredibly important decision you’ll have to make is the type of attachments you’ll want to pair with the forklift to optimise its capabilities even more. The attachments enable the forklift to perform multiple tasks, making it one of the most versatile pieces of material handling equipment you’ll own. Some of the most popular forklift attachments include the following.
Telescopic Boom
You can replace a crane with a forklift in many applications by slipping the forks of your lift truck into the pockets of a jib boom. A safety chain is used to securely attach the forks to the truck’s mast. The cost of this attachment is mostly dictated by its weight capacity, and most telescopic booms can support up to 3.000kg.
Spreader Bar For Forklift
As the name implies, a spreader bar for forklift enables your forklift to pick up bigger bites and carry more items in a single load. Spreaders are available in a wide range of lengths, and they basically make your operations more efficient, saving time by allowing you to carry more loads at a time.
Side Shifter
This attachment allows the operator to quickly adjust loads right and left with the single push of a button. This can be especially useful when operating in tight spaces, as side shifters enable you to quickly shift pallets and other types of loads at ground level or when racking without repositioning the forklift.
Fork Positioners
These attachments are ideal for warehouse applications that routinely require the operator to deal with a range of pallet sizes. Fork positioners allow you to slide the forks in and out of different pallet openings. As a result, you’ll reduce the damage done to pallets and increase your productivity at the same time. These attachments come in a range of sizes, weight capacity and mounting classes.
