The lift truck has been around ever since the early part of the 1920's. Ever since its inception, the lift truck has become an indispensable equipment for the materials handling industry.
Sometimes referred to as lift trucks, among their initial uses was lifting and transporting baggage at airports and train stations. During the Second World War the use of these equipment exploded and the warehousing industry expanded significantly. The conventional machine was adapted to deal with the need to stack inventory on higher shelves and they were made to move faster and lift heavier cargo.
The lift truck is normally utilized for stacking inventory inside warehouses. Things for the most part are packed onto pallets that are designed particularly to enable the forks to move under the openings of the pallets. The lift truck can then securely lift the cargo without it falling into the ground or wobbling. When the pallets are in place, they could be easily transported to another place. Forklifts are also used much in the docking, shipping, mining and agricultural industry.
The forklift is also seen on constructions sites, as many models have been made to pick up big heavy boxes and heavy pipes, concrete slabs, ceramics and other equipment. Since it is fairly a compact unit, this specific equipment could move from one place to a different place at a moderately good speed.
Depending on the specific unit and its intended application, the forklifts dimensions may vary. There are narrow aisle units specially for warehouse use. These need the floor to be extremely flat and are quite a bit smaller in size. Typically, they are designed with rear wheel steering. There has been a dramatic increase in these equipment in the mining and manufacturing machinery industries. As forklifts often deal with pharmaceuticals and petrochemicals and flammable materials, the machines have become more robust and stronger.
The forklifts may have load capacities from 1 to as many as 5 tons. Several heavy duty models have been designed to handle as many as 50 tons. These units are usually used to load shipping equipment off of and into ships. Lift trucks and their required training to operate are specifically regulated to ensure the safety of the individuals using this specific equipment. No body can legally use them without completing the correct documents and training.