Forklifts are machines which forklift operators use to shuttle supplies from one location to another in manufacturing and warehouse environments. The equipment lifts pallets, also called skids, which are loaded with objects. The lift truck is designed with forks which insert into the pallet rungs. Forklifts are also sometimes called Lift Trucks, Pallet Trucks, High/Low, Skid Trucks, Side Loaders and Stacker Trucks.
The very first forklifts were sold during the early 1900s by companies such as Clark and Yale & Towne Manufacturing. Nowadays nearly all supplies are delivered to warehouses and stores on pallets. Forklifts are normally found inside manufacturing factories and warehouses, where they are used to operate the business smoothly.
The following are amongst the various types of pallet or skid lifts: Walkie low lift truck - with electrical motor; Rider low lift truck; Hand pallet truck; Telescopic handler; Towing tractor; IC counterbalanced truck; Sideloader; Slip Sheet machine; Walkie stacker; Rider stacker; Walkie Order Picking truck; Reach truck; Electric counterbalanced truck; Rider Order Picking truck - also known as "Order Picker"; Articulated Very Narrow Aisle Counterbalanced trucks - also referred to as "Flexi Truck"; Truck Mounted Forklift / Sod Loader; Guided Very Narrow Aisle truck ; 'Man Down' - for narrow aisles; and 'Man Riser' Combination Order Picker/ Stacker truck
The articulated counterbalance truck is a type of counterbalanced forklift truck that is utilized for specialized applications. This hybrid is suggested for really narrow aisles because it is capable of offloading and onloading in really tight spaces.
Capable if lifting as high as 12 meters are the Guided Vary Narrow Aisle Trucks. The "non top-tied" type can lift up to 30 meters high. These trucks are available in man-riser and man-down models. This machinery should be used only on floors that are even and flat.