Forklifts are equipment that forklift drivers use to transport supplies from one place to another in manufacturing and warehouse environments. The machinery carries 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, Skid Trucks, High/Low, Stacker-Trucks and Side Loaders.
The first forklifts were sold during the early part of the 1900s by companies such as Clark and Yale & Towne Manufacturing. These days nearly all supplies stores on pallets and are shipped to warehouses. Forklifts are commonly found within warehouses and manufacturing factories, where they are utilized to operate the business smoothly.
The following are some of the different types of skid lifts or pallets: Walkie low lift truck - with electrical motor; Rider low lift truck; Hand pallet truck; IC counterbalanced truck; Telescopic handler; Towing tractor; Sideloader; Walkie stacker; Rider stacker; Slip Sheet machine; Walkie Order Picking truck; Reach truck; Electric counterbalanced truck; Rider Order Picking truck - also referred to 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' - utilized for narrow aisles; and 'Man Riser' Combination Order Picker/ Stacker truck
There are counterbalanced forklift trucks available for specialized uses, like for example the articulated counterbalance truck. This hybrid is suggested for very narrow aisles because it is capable of offloading and onloading within very tight spaces.
The Guided Very Narrow Aisle Trucks are capable of lifting as high as 12 meters, and even up to 30 meters if it is a "non top-tied" type. These trucks are available in man-riser and man-down models. This machinery should just be used on even and flat floors.