Electric pallet trucks-the best material handling equipment

Author: David Nicholas

The material handling industry categorizes electric pallet trucks into various classes. There are different kinds of products includes a variety of electric motor lift trucks that are either walk-behind or standing-rider operated, such as:

  • Electric pallet trucks, or jacks
  • Walkie stackers
  • Tuggers

Now, we have to focus on the walk-behind style of electric pallet trucks. Having an electric pallet truck allows companies to move product that is not required to be stacked within its warehouse. Regardless of the manufacturer, this category of lift trucks carries a smaller price tag. While oftentimes the savings is enough, many companies find additional benefits to using an electric pallet truck.

  • Fits your budget – If stacking product is not a requirement, an electric pallet truck may fit the needs of your application. On average, an electric pallet truck offers a savings of 65% compared to a similar capacity sit-down forklift.
  • Reduces your manual pallet truck fleet – Purchasing one electric pallet truck can replace several manual pallet trucks. While manual pallet trucks are inexpensive in initial cost, the lost productivity can easily justify a powered pallet truck.
  • Uses electric power – The use of electric power versus internal combustion powered forklifts offers the advantages of quieter operation and lack of fumes. This can be especially important if your operator is moving product in an enclosed area. Electric product also has lower operating and maintenance expenses when compared to internal combustion forklifts.
  • Better ergonomics – Having the product lifted and propelled by a powered motor instead of the operator reduces the back strain and fatigue experienced by operators of manual pallet trucks. Your company may experience a reduction of reported injuries.
  • By design, manual pallet trucks are able to transport very heavy loads smoothly so that pallets are not damaged en route.
  • Manual pallet trucks have the benefit of a basic design that enables them to fit many kinds of pallet. They are very versatile, allowing them to be used in operations of any scale. They can also be purchased with varying fork dimensions to better serve in applications that require those dimensions.

Electric pallet trucks can put a strain on the user and potentially cause injuries. By their nature, manual pallet trucks can be more cumbersome to operate. Due to the limited amount of weight a worker can move on his own, manual pallet trucks are not beneficial if loaded anywhere near its weight capacity.