The fork lift sector has faced the challenges of Covid and Brexit over the last couple of years and is set to return to growth. Lift truck operators are advised to be aware of forthcoming changes in the permitted use of rebated fuels, such as red diesel, intended to incentivise users to improve the energy efficiency of their operations. Under the changes, the permitted uses for rebated fuels, of which red diesel is one, will be significantly reduced from 1 April 2022. It will then be illegal to put rebated fuel into a machine for uses which fall outside the scope of the new rules. Operators using red diesel will need to ensure that red diesel in their current machines or storage tanks are used up by the April deadline.

This article was first published in the December 15th 2021 issue of Warehouse & Logistics News, subscribe to the magazine by clicking here.

One of the new products to be launched this year by Combilift, the Aisle Master-OP (AME-OP) was a winner in this year’s “Handling Award 2021”, organised by German publication, Industrial Production. A jury of industry experts and votes from the readership determined the winners from over 30 entries, and the AME-OP won silver place in the Handling and Assembly Category of this year’s Awards. The new AME-OP is a stand-on electric powered model that combines the advantages of a narrow aisle articulated forklift and an order picker for versatile operation in warehousing applications.

The new Hyster J2.5-3.0XNL lift trucks offer fast charging times, as little as one or two hours, helping to increase operational uptime. Opportunity charging can be easily built into working patterns, with no adverse effect on battery life. An external charge socket enables quick and easy connection and there is no battery exchange process needed.

Cold stores are an essential part of the modern logistics chain — but they are also expensive to run, and challenging to operate in. All UniCarriers’ electric trucks are readily available as cold store variants — even at temperatures down to -35°C, the trucks can operate smoothly with some modifications. The rest of the UniCarriers 360° service can further contribute to the smooth operation of cold store trucks — service, training, fleet information and logistics analysis can all increase uptime and boost efficiency in these challenging environments.

Driver aids such as pedestrian warning systems are frequently used at warehouse, production and manufacturing sites across the country, according to Transmon. By integrating an Adaptive Speed Control system with a forklift or other material handling equipment, the Speed Controller assists the driver by reacting immediately upon sensing a pedestrian or other obstacle in the vicinity, the driver’s reaction time to slow the truck is avoided, and the truck starts to brake automatically. Radar, RFID, UWB, LiDAR and Ultrasonic technologies are readily available and often used in combination with Adaptive Speed Control systems to provide Dynamic Speed Management.

After the challenges of recent times, and the red diesel reform to come, one hopes the fork lift industry has turned a corner and is set for a prosperous future.

George Simpson

Features Editor

 

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