Roughly 60 percent of the lift truck market is made up by electric forklift models. These models get their power from big, heavy lead-acid batteries that give the equipment it's counterweight in order to prevent it from tipping over.
Based on ITA, electric counterbalanced lift trucks are considered Class 1 lift trucks. Class 1 is the category which covers all stand-up counterbalanced trucks and other electric lift trucks. Even if the initial investment when buying an electric lift truck is more than an internal combustion or IC forklift, electric lift trucks are less expensive to operate and run in the long-run. This is due to lower maintenance and fuel costs, in comparison to the IC models.
Within North America, the majority of electric rider lift trucks are designed for transporting materials indoors. Electric rider forklifts are utilized most commonly in warehousing applications, and retail spaces. The electric units are the right choice for inside use due to their ability to make less noise and emit zero toxic emissions.
The battery of an electric lift truck could run on average for 8 hours or for a single shift. The recharging, reloading and removing batteries that weigh upwards of 3000 pounds could be hard and time consuming. This cumbersome task normally needs a dedicated area for battery handling. Nevertheless, new fast charging technologies are being used to update this method and change the procedure to be able to complete it in a much faster method.
Fast charging technologies are considered the best charging technologies. It has changed electric model lift trucks and the time it takes to charge their batteries. The material handling industry experts, state that these new developments within the battery charging systems and battery technology could reduce charging time by as much as 50 percent!
IC Counterbalanced Lift Trucks
The IC powered forklifts will depend on kinds of fuels, such as LPG or liquid propane gas, diesel, compressed natural gas or CNG and gasoline. The larger lift trucks are commonly utilized outside. Generally, these models operate on diesel or gas and uses air-filled or pneumatic tires so as to make them suitable for rough environment and steep slopes, as opposed to cushion tires. Cushion tires are more suitable for smooth services and indoor applications because they are made from solid rubber.
The LPG unit is the most common fuel choice for indoor trucks. Nowadays, there are over 600,000 propane-filled lift trucks working all over the globe. These units provide numerous benefits. For instance, propane-fueled lift trucks maintain 100% constant power during operation. In addition, these models provide faster ground speeds compared to other power sources.