Normally, electric lift trucks are the most ideal alternative for indoor use within manufacturing and warehousing operations for 2 major reasons: First off they create zero emissions. This is a really important factor to consider for indoor work places. Out of the Internal Combustion or IC units, just the propane-fueled models are able to be utilized inside and these units still need extremely good ventilation. Gas and diesel powered models could not be used indoors under any circumstances.
The primary benefit of electric lift trucks is fuel expenses. Compared to IC or internal combustion models, these have lower costs per hour. Amongst the main drawbacks to utilizing the electric forklifts is their higher initial cost. New electric forklifts can vary from 20 percent to 40% more than internal combustion units that are similarly rated.
Electric lift trucks on the other hand, provide many advantages such as quiet operations, that can be a huge plus for indoor environments. Furthermore, no need for fuel storage mean no room needs to be allotted for tanks of fuels that are both flammable and dangerous. As electric lift trucks have less parts that move compared to internal combustion models, and they are usually utilized indoors and within cleaner environments, they tend to have a longer overall lifespan.
The battery downtime is the biggest downside of an electric forklift. These units function with heavy, big, lead-acid batteries, like those found inside your car. These batteries are extremely powerful and really large. Usually, batteries provide enough power for one regular 8-hour shift, and this translates into 5 or 6 hours of continuous use.
Charging a forklift battery will take around 8 hours. An additional 8 hours of cooling time is required before it could be utilized after the charging process is done. Because of this long process of slow charging speed and additional cooling time, if you need forklifts for 2 or 3 shift operations, you should purchase additional batteries so you can always be charging the next battery. These additional batteries would add roughly $1000 to $2000 to the purchase price.
There are some new fast charge electric forklifts available on the market. These specialized batteries have revolutionized the electric forklift industry. Their charging could be done during the course of lunch and coffee breaks, enabling them to get back to work much faster.