The lift truck has become such an important piece of machinery found and used in most industrial operations and warehousing, ever since its introduction to the market more than 90 years ago in the 1920's. Amongst the forklift's pioneers, Clark has grown to become an industry leading supplier in the material handling industry. Other well-known names in the making of these machinery include: Yale, Hyster, Nissan Cat, Toyota and Mitsubishi.
The Hyster type of lift truck has become one of the industries most popular manufacturers. The fact is, in several regions, the word "Hyster" is synonymous with forklift. Various other names for this industrial lifting machines include: stacker truck, fork truck, high/low, lift truck and jitney.
The ancestor of today's machines was first developed in the early 19th century. At this time, small, battery-powered units were invented for the purpose of moving traveler's baggage at the Altoona train station within Pennsylvania. During the First World War, several different versions were made in England specially to be utilized in the material handling business. These machines evolved as a solution to the manpower shortage at that time.
Today's machines come in many configurations and sizes. Sod loaders are big truck-mounted forklift models and some of the bigger machines, whilst the smaller machinery consist of hand truck units. There are also a line of automated versions known as forklift automated guided vehicles that are basically robotic in nature. These units were made as a way of lowering operational costs and to improve productivity.
Attachments have been made to fit onto many regular lift trucks, giving them the capability of performing a wider selection of tasks. The motors can be internal combustion or IC units, running on propane, diesel or gasoline, or there are battery operated options that need regular charging. Typical warehouse models will usually be rated to lift between approximately 1 and 5 tons.
The forklift has become a priceless component in the material handling business. Thousands of these units are used every day throughout the world to perform jobs that used to require a lot more man-power. Operators have to take stringent training programs in order to legally and safely operate these heavy machinery. Many workers have better overall health and longer careers now due to their not having to raise items manually anymore because the forklifts can handle those situations now instead.