Find out more about which industries use forklifts? This article looks at the uses of forklifts in construction sites, warehouses, dockyards and other industries.
Industrial Uses Of Forklifts
Since its inception in the early twentieth century, forklifts have revolutionised how our industries operate. Whereas before, it was down to human strength to move items from various locations on construction sites or warehouses, things became a lot easier after the forklift arrived. As you can probably tell, the forklift was named for the two pallet forks attached to the front that slide underneath the materials that need lifting.
Here we will look at these versatile machines and how they are utilised in different industries. As you can probably imagine, forklifts are primarily used to lift and transport goods across sites or warehouses. However, with various attachments available, there are several different ways you can use a forklift, making them very adaptable for use in different industries.
Construction Sites
Forklifts are ideal for working on construction sites with rough terrain. Given that they perform two tasks, combining efficient transportation with heavy lifting equipment makes them perfect for easily moving heavy building materials across sites. You can use forklifts to transport and unload any piled materials, from steel girders to bricks.
With their compact size, forklift trucks are also perfectly suited to the often narrow spaces on construction sites. They can often access areas that other lifting tools or vehicles cannot. Therefore, given their versatility, it's easy to see why forklifts are so popular in the construction and manufacturing industry. Most forklift hire companies have truck-mounted forklifts, which can be brought to any site, unloaded and put straight to work.
Forklifts are most at home when used in large warehouse operations. Here, they are primarily used for unloading and loading delivery trucks, alongside transporting goods from one area of a warehouse to another. Again, their compact size makes them ideal for most warehouses' narrow aisles and working conditions. The variety of sizes and styles guarantee you will find the perfect forklift for your warehouse operations.
From smaller manually-operated forklifts to giant, heavy-duty, driver-operated models, forklifts are suited to almost any warehouse work. Pallet trucks are a similar type of lifting equipment used in warehousing, and they can also be placed into the forklift family. They are typically used for stacks of items or materials delivered on pallets, hence the name.
Shelf stackers are also members of the forklift family used in warehouse operations and, as the name suggests, are used for safe material handling needs and moving goods onto shelves or racks. You can also modify your shelf stacker with a "man basket", which can safely lift people to heights for things such as repairs or warehouse maintenance.
Dockyards
Forklifts have been used in dockyards and the shipping industry since World War II, when the efficiency and speed of these lifting vehicles were essential to keep the smooth supply of men, arms and supplies flowing to Europe and the Mediterranean.
In modern shipyards, you'll find more heavy-duty forklifts being used to transport loads from delivery trucks to storage zones before being loaded onto ships.
Recycling
You're also likely to find forklifts in operation at recycling plants. Again, they are ideal for unloading recycling trucks and large containers before transporting the waste to the sorting bays.
Modifications, such as carrying cages, can also be fitted to forklifts to carry items that would usually fall off their forks.
Since recycling centres work with vast amounts of waste on a daily basis, you can see how the efficiency and ease of forklift trucks can benefit this industry.
Snow Plows
Rather than hiring an expensive, purpose-built snow plough for when the winter months roll in, you can use your versatile and adaptable forklift instead. By simply adding a plough attachment to the front of your forklift, you can turn it into an easy-to-use snow plough to clear your car park, paths, walkways, operating areas and any other areas on your site.
This adaptability means your forklift improves your operations' efficiency and ensures your business can continue working during adverse weather conditions.
Uses of Forklifts in various industries
Now we've gone through the different industries that utilise forklift trucks, we'll take a look at the uses of forklifts in those industries. They can handle most industrial or construction work, given the heavy-duty nature of truck-mounted forklifts. Of course, in most cases, you'll be using forklifts to lift and carry materials and loads since that's what they are built for.
But those forked platforms attached to mobile cabins perform such a vital role in these industries that we'd definitely notice if they disappeared.
It may also be useful to talk about how forklifts are operated before looking at how they are used. Forklifts are either powered by a petrol or diesel engine or an electric battery.
There are also two options for seating arrangements, whether you want a forklift you can sit inside and drive or pedestrian-operated machines where you have to stand behind while you operate it. It won't be surprising to discover that this incredibly useful and powerful machine is also very expensive to buy, which is why most industries choose to rent their forklifts to carry out their operations.
Here are some of the most common uses of forklifts in various industries:
The main use of forklifts is for moving materials from one location to another. Therefore, you're most likely to find them indoors in warehouses, storage areas or distribution centres. Whether you're unloading trucks, moving materials across your site, stacking or picking, forklifts are the tool for the job.
Forklifts mostly lift loads placed onto pallets, given their configuration, since this is how forklifts were designed to work. But pallets aren't the only thing they can lift. Whether you store your materials in crates, drums, boxes or any other option, forklifts can lift and move them.
Alongside transporting goods, forklifts are also well-suited to moving construction materials around sites with limited space. While they may be small and nimble, forklifts are also powerful enough to lift heavy building materials and carry them over long distances and rough terrain. This improves on-site safety and efficiency, helping you bring your project in on time.
From this, you can see how versatile forklifts are. Not only do they have the power to lift heavy materials, but they are also transportation vehicles. Again, they can also help with unloading when delivery trucks arrive at your site.
LSince the warehouse is the natural home of the forklift, it's not difficult to imagine the breadth of heavy-duty work they can perform here. From loading and unloading trucks to stacking and retrieving materials and goods, forklifts are essential to efficient warehouse operations. Given the need for effective lifting and transportation, you'll find several kinds of forklifts in warehouses up and down the country.
These range from the smaller, agile forklifts to giant, heavy-duty truck models. Some of the largest forklifts have an operational capacity of over 50 tonnes, but these are mostly used for transporting shipping containers, railway cars and larger weights.
Recycling centres have to deal with vast amounts of material on a daily basis, meaning forklifts are an essential part of their operations. You can use them to unload recycling trucks before moving the material into the appropriate sorting bays. If the recycling centre is significantly large, you might already have certain lift trucks or vehicles.
In this case, your forklifts will mostly be used to get the materials from one truck to another. And you aren't limited to just using the forks of a forklift. You can find cage attachments that you can fix to the front of the forklift to help it move loose or slippery materials that can't be stacked.
Of course, safety is a top priority for those working in recycling centres, so preparing your work site before using any forklifts is essential. This includes checking your forklifts, including their brakes and fixed jacks. When moving without a load, the forks should point down, while with a load, they should be pointing upwards.
Like other industries transporting heavy loads and materials, forklifts are just as useful for maritime and shipping yards transport. Again, you can use the largest industrial forklifts to haul entire shipping containers around your site.
Alternatively, they are perfectly suited to moving smaller loads from one loading area to another. Since most dockyard work involves trade in the supply chain, this typically involves unloading trucks and loading transportation ships. And, as you can imagine by now, forklifts are perfectly suited to this kind of work.
Unlike other material handling equipment simply used for loading and transporting goods and materials, there are more specialised uses that forklifts are perfect for. For example, you can fit them with a broom attachment to turn them into an efficient sweeping vehicle. Again, there's also the snow plough attachment to shovel snow on your site.
However, given the size and power of these machines, you must ensure that only qualified persons are allowed to be forklift operators on your site.
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