About 60 percent of the lift truck market is made up by electric lift truck units. These models are powered by heavy, big lead-acid batteries that that prevents the equipment from tipping over since it acts as the counterweight.
According to the ITA, electric counterbalanced forklifts are considered Class 1 lift trucks. Class 1 is the category which covers all stand-up counterbalanced trucks and other electric forklifts. Even though the initial investment when purchasing an electric lift truck is more as opposed to an internal combustion or IC lift truck, electric trucks are much less costly to operate and run in the long-run. This is because of lower fuel and maintenance costs, than the IC models.
In North America, most electric rider forklifts are designed for moving materials indoors. Electric rider forklifts are used most commonly in retail spaces, and warehousing applications. The electric units are the best alternative for inside applications since they emit zero toxic emissions and make less noise.
As well, electric forklift could generally operate a complete 8 hour shift on a single battery charge. Recharging, reloading and removing batteries, that generally weigh about 3000 pounds could be time consuming and hard. This cumbersome task often requires a dedicated area for handling the battery. However, new fast charging technologies are being used to update this method and change the procedure to be able to complete it in a much faster way.
Fast charging technologies are considered the best charging technologies. It has revolutionized electric unit forklifts and the charging time of their batteries. The professionals of the material handling business, state that these new changes in the battery technology and battery charging systems can cut charging time by up to 50 percent!
IC Counterbalanced Forklifts
The IC powered forklifts will depend on types of fuels, like LPG or liquid propane gas, diesel, compressed natural gas or CNG and gasoline. The bigger lift trucks are usually used outside. Generally, these units operate on diesel or gas and utilizes air-filled or pneumatic tires so as to make them appropriate for steep inclines and rough environment, compared to cushion tires. Cushion tires are more suitable for indoor applications and smooth services because they are made from solid rubber.
The LPG model is the most popular fuel choice for indoor trucks. Nowadays, there are more than 600,000 propane-filled forklifts working all over the world. These models offer various benefits. For example, propane-fueled forklifts maintain 100% consistent power during operation. Also, these units provide faster ground speeds as opposed to other power sources.