Forklifts For Sale In Dallas Fort Worth Texas

By Leslie Ball





The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) defines a forklift, also called a powered industrial truck (PIT), as a vehicle used to tier, stack, pull, push, carry, or lift materials. Other names are lift truck, pallet truck, rider truck, lifttruck or forktruck. Before going out shopping for forklifts for sale in Dallas and in Fort Worth, TX, it is a good idea to make sure you know all the different classes of forklift to make sure you get the right one for your uses.



The vector forces that influence a lift truck make it inherently unstable. Each year, almost 100 individuals are killed in accidents involving forktrucks, while more than 30,000 see the inside of an emergency room before they go home from work. Fatalities and serious injuries mostly arise as a result of the forklift tipping over and crushing the rider, or from a collision involving a pedestrian and a lift truck. Studies have shown that most serious forklift accidents in which someone is killed or maimed would have been prevented by proper training. In 1999, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) began levying fines on companies that employed people who did not have the necessary training and certification.



Lift trucks may be powered by electricity or by an internal combustion engine with gasoline, diesel or LPG as the fuel. Another feature used in the classification of PITs is the type of tire, solid or pneumatic. Solid tires are used on smooth surfaces, while pneumatic tires work better on uneven surfaces. Pallet trucks are divided into six classifications.



Class I forktrucks are powered by electricity and the operator sits on the vehicle. As they do not produce noxious fumes as do internal combustion engines, Class I trucks are used where ventilation cannot support the use of gas-powered vehicles. These trucks may use either solid or pneumatic tires.



Class II PITs, electric motor narrow aisle trucks, are designed for high-density, narrow-aisled warehouses or shop floors. They are used when air quality and conservation of space are important. They have special features that enable them to function optimally in conditions where the aisles are narrow.



Class III trucks are manipulated by hand as the operator walks alongside. These are ideal for loading and unloading materials close to the ground. They have a tiller located on the side of the truck where all the controls are located. The operator manipulates the controls while he or she walks.



Class IV forktrucks are powered by an internal combustion engine and use solid (cushion) wheels. These are used on dry, smooth floors to move materials between the loading dock and the storage area. Lower to the ground than trucks with pneumatic tires, these lifts are useful in low-clearance environments.



Like Class IV trucks, those that fall into Class 5 have internal combustion engines and run on LPG, diesel or gasoline. There are also some that use compressed natural gas, or CNG. These are the most versatile and the most popular type of lift truck. Trucks that are used in rough terrain are in Class VI.









About the Author:








#end

No comments:

Post a Comment