Since its introduction in the early 1920s, the lift truck has become an important piece of machinery found in many industrial operations and warehousing. Clark, among the pioneers of the very first lift truck, has grown to become a leader in the material handling industry and still remains a leading supplier. Other popular names in the manufacturing of these machinery comprise: Mitsubishi, Cat, Toyota, Nissan, Yale and Hyster.
Hyster has grown to become among the most popular units of lift trucks in the industry. In fact, in several regions, the word "Hyster" is synonymous with forklift. Other common names for this industrial lifting machinery include: lift truck, jitney, high/low, stacker truck and fork truck.
The ancestor of today's machines was first made during the early part of the 19th century. At this time, battery-powered, small models were made for the purpose of transporting traveler's luggage at the Altoona train station in Pennsylvania. During WWI, several different kinds were developed within England specifically for use in the material handling industry. These machines evolved as a solution to the manpower shortage at that time.
The modern equivalents come in a range of sizes and configurations. There are the big truck-mounted lift truck units that are also called sod loaders and then the opposite end of the spectrum has small hand truck models. There are also a line of automated versions known as forklift automated guided vehicles which are practically robotic in nature. These models were developed as a means of lowering operational costs and to improve productivity.
A regular lift truck is able to utilize a huge array of attachments which are capable of being added for a variety of particular functions. The motors could be internal combustion or IC units, working on propane, diesel or gasoline, or there are battery operated options that need regular charging. Standard warehouse units will normally be rated to lift between roughly 1 and 5 tons.
The lift truck has become a priceless part in the material handling industry. Many of these models are used every day throughout the world to perform jobs which used to require a lot more man-power. Operators have to take stringent training programs in order to run these heavy machinery legally and safely. A lot of employees have longer careers now and better health overall due to their not having to lift objects by hand anymore as the forklifts are capable of handling those situations now instead.