Page 43 – Warehouse IQ

How to buy a forklift – 4 basic needs

When buying a forklift, there are 4 considerations:

Operational Requirements
Performance
Space efficiency
Capital outlay versus total cost of ownership

For each of these areas, specific questions can be asked and answered to help identify the best lift truck for your operation. This is a guide to help a prospective lift truck buyer with the sometimes dizzying task of selecting the best lift truck for their operation.

Operational Requirements – What are you lifting or transporting?

Answer first your operational need with the smallest truck possible. This will serve you well for minimizing some of the other cost drivers such as: space requirements (land costs), initial investment (capital costs), and energy and repair costs (larger trucks cost more to repair and to fuel).

How long is your load?

Most warehouse forklifts are designed to carry a 4 foot long load. The load center the capacity it is rated on is 24″ (half the length of the load). Know the length of your load and request capacity around your load center, e.g. “a forklift with a 3,000lbs capacity at 24″ load center”.

How heavy is your heaviest load at your highest storage location?

Know the weight of your load being lifted to your top storage location, often called the top load beam. If you are in the food business and carry one of the heaviest pallets moved in a warehouse, a pallet of water, then your load weights are very likely to be no more than 2,000lbs at a 24″ load center. With the lighter bottle designs, these pallets are almost never double stacked.

Are you lifting this weight to your top load beam? Or are you keeping this product on the ground? This is important to know due to down-rating (d-rating for short). Here are some facts you will find useful in sizing equipment:

Sitdown counterbalanced trucks have little or no down-rating below free-lift (lifting the height of the first mast stage, 83″ or 88″).
Reach trucks have little or no down-rating below 230″.
Many of the smallest pallet jacks have minimum capacities of 4,000 lbs or 4,500 lbs at prices below $5,000 each.
Medium sized pallet jacks have minimum capacities of 6,000 lbs to 8,000 lbs.

Many companies will purchase a 5,000 lbs lift when a 3,000 lbs capacity lift would suffice. Unless two 1800 lbs loads are lifted double stacked, anything more than a 3,000 lb might be more than necessary.

Performance – Is labor your largest cost driver in your operation?

It is well documented that the cost of the operation of a lift truck is not its acquisition (11%), its repair (8%), its insurance (3%), but is in fact the labor for its operation! A full 77% of the costs surround materials handling equipment is the labor to operate it. With this in consideration, you might consider paying slightly more on the capital side of the equation for a higher performing lift truck.

Here is how you do it.

Ask all the manufacturers to send you the truck they recommend for your operation as a demo. Put them into operation and track the number of pallets the operator handles using the piece of equipment. Keep the equipment for as long as you can to get some good consistent data. Compare manufacturers based on the pallets your people were able to move in your facility.

Also, perform a time trial. Look at the time it takes to start at shipping, go half way across your warehouse and half way deep down an aisle to determine the average travel distance. Ask the operator to pick a pallet from your highest location and bring it down. Have him/her return to shipping. Write down the time. Perform the same cycle test for all manufacturers. A 25% time difference could add up to $100,000s of dollars each year in labor.

Do not allow the manufacturers to point to their own top speeds listed in their literature. Invariably, the speeds will be under ideal conditions with a fully charged battery or a brand new engine. Speeds are meaningless, performance is everything.

Some quick facts:

24 volt trucks can be 15% less expensive compared to 36 volt trucks but can be half as productive
AC lift trucks can have higher productivity compared to DC lifts – in some cases as much as 21% higher productivity.
48 volt trucks are available for many 36 volt model sit down counter balance and often higher performance characteristics.

Space Efficiency – What is the turning aisle?

The cost of land is one of the largest contributing fixed cost drivers in a warehouse. To build space efficiency will increase the overall efficiency of an operation. Consider these space efficiency facts:

Stand-up forklifts can be 21% more space efficient than sit-down lift trucks.
Reach trucks can be 30% more space efficient than sit-down lift trucks.
Deep reach trucks can be 30% more space efficient than reach trucks.
Swing reach trucks can be 50% more space efficient than sit-down lift trucks.

Now consider that in a more space efficient warehouse, labor is proportionally more efficient due to shorter travel distances between pick locations.

By correctly sizing a sitdown truck, the lift trucks can be smaller and more space efficient.

Capital Costs versus Operating Costs – How much does your lift truck cost to run?

Some companies see a great advantage in buying used lift trucks. The fact is, after 2 years, a new lift truck is often depreciated to 50% of its original purchase price. After 5 years, many leasing companies hold as little as a 10% or 20% residual on what would appear to be a perfectly well running lift truck.

Also, looking at the purchase price of a propane lift truck versus an electric version by the same manufacturer is to see a 30% price advantage. The lower capital costs can often appear tempting when capital purchases are seen only in isolation. But a lift truck consumes more parts and service as it ages and propane lift trucks consume almost 10 times the cost in fuel compared to electrics.

The Cost of Fuel – the price of Propane is going up!

For a helpful 3rd party calculator to help you determine the cost of fuel as a contributor to the lift truck’s overall cost of ownership, check out: http://et.epri.com/LiftTruckCalculator.html

Another helpful article to read is found here: https://www.warehouseiq.com/electric-forklifts-vs-lp-forklifts-reduce-operating-costs/

Used forklifts for sale – A buyer’s guide

How to buy a used lift truck

Use this buyer’s guide to help you when you shop for a used forklift. When you look at a used forklift for sale, you will need to know a few things to determine the value:

Age
Hours
History
Condition

Let’s go over the basics of each of the above contributing factors to the price and value of a lift truck.

What is the forklift’s age?

Age is an important factor for the determining the cost side of the price you will pay for a lift truck. A brand new lift truck will “cost” 100% of the book value. This means that the cost to the seller is predetermined and related to the depreciation the truck has on the seller’s books. Sometimes, you will get more value by buying a 5 year or older lift truck with lower hours than a newer forklift with more hours.

So now with an idea of the starting book value the lift truck has, you will need to understand the age of the truck you are buying. On a Raymond or a Crown, this is easy. In the serial number of a Raymond forklift, you will find the age of the truck in a 2-digit code. The serial number might look like this: EZ-99-AJ23679. This lift truck is a 1999 model

On a Crown, the age of the equipment is stamped on the side of the mast in the following format: mm-dd-yy. Ask the seller to send you a photo of this information when selling the lift truck.

On a Toyota, it is less easy and has much to do with the model series of the truck, eg. 6 series, 7 series, 8 series. The series will tell you about features and the age of the engineering and technology.

On a Hyster the serial numbers are longer than most small novels and has a letter denoting the year. You will need a guide to decode it. Otherwise, on the spec plate, the date of manufacture is noted.

Forklift hours on a used truck

Whereas with cars the remaining economic life remaining is determined by the number of the miles on the odometer, with a lift truck the life remaining is determined in many cases by the number of hours on the hour meter.

There are a number of different hour meters on many electric lift trucks. These meters measure the amount of work on each motor, including the lift motor, travel, and a combination of both called deadman hours and then there is key hours.

Key hours on a used forklift

Key hours are the hours logged by amount of time the key switch is turned to “on” on a lift truck. On a gas or LP truck, this is equivalent to the running time of the motor. Key hours are often an inaccurate measurement of work on an electric lift truck as the motors do not spin even when the truck is energized and ready for work.

Deadman hours on a used fork truck

Deadman hours are a truer measurement of work as they represent the time a lift truck is actually working. This hour meter is activated when the lift truck operator is standing on the deadman pedal inside the operator’s compartment.

History of a pre-owned forklift

What is the history of the previously owned lift truck? Where has the truck that is for sale been working? How many shifts has it been working? Was it part of a rental fleet sitting for half its life or was it working 2.5 shifts in the cooler of a chicken processing plant? Did it work in ambient or freezer? Do you know if it maintained on a contract or on a time and material agreement? Are maintenance records available? The answer to these questions will have a large effect on the truck’s resale value.

Here are some items that would seriously affect the future performance of a lift truck

Pallet truck performance impacts:

Was it used on a dock?
Was it used in a cooler/freezer?

Reach truck usage impacts:

Was it used in drive-in rack?
Was it used in push-back rack?
Is there play in the scissor mechanism?
Are the base legs straight?

Orderpicker usage impact:

Was it used in rail-guidance or wire-guidance? (Rail is hard on a truck)

Forklift usage location:

Was it used inside or outside?

Electric Forklift Usage Parameters:

Is the forklift battery new or used? (A replacement battery is anywhere between $3k-$5k)
How new or old is the battery charger?

Propane issues:

How much compression is left in the motor?
Does it leak fluids?

Added costs to consider when buying a used forklift

Consider these items that add cost to your used forklift trucks:

A full set of wheels and tires can add up to $1000
A new battery can add up to $5k
Repacking the lift cylinder (leaks) will add at least $1000
Contactors will cost hundreds of dollars
New brushes will add $500 to replace
A reconditioned motor can cost up to $2,500
Blown circuit cards are up to $1000 each (Crown lift trucks have as many as 8).

Feedback on this ‘used forklifts for sale’ guide

Hopefully this guide has helped you know what to look for when you come across a used forklift for sale, and consider buying it. If you have a question or comment, you can send it to us at [email protected]

How to charge and care for forklift batteries

When charging forklift batteries, you will want to follow these very simple tips.

Keep your battery:

Cool – allow post-charge cooling to below 120F
Clean – clean, dry batteries last longer and have fewer problems
Watered – keep the plates in the cells covered without overflow
Charged – unless using specialized chargers, charge no more than once every 24hrs
Discharged – discharge to no more than 80% depth of discharge (many forklifts prevent over-discharge with a lift interrupt)
Rotated – it is good practice to rotate your battery fleet if in a multi-shift, multi-battery environment

On a daily basis:

Inspect your batteries after a complete recharge and cooling (usually 8 hours of charging and 8 hours of cooling). Check for frayed cables , broken connectors, etc.
Discharge to no more than 80%. You can fool the forklift into discharging the battery below 80% by performing a boost charge on a break. The forklift will think there is more energy in the battery than there is. This may cause damage to the battery and extra wear on the forklift truck. Remember the more a battery is discharged, the higher the amps flow into the truck, the greater the wear on the forklift’s electrical components.

On a regular basis:

Check that the battery and the charger are properly matched. Just because the connectors match does not mean the charger is match in charger output of DC volts and battery ampere hour capacity. Ask your sales rep to perform an audit to be certain. He/she has been trained to identify mismatched batteries and chargers.
Water the battery weekly upon full recharge. Be sure the battery is filled to at least 1/4″ below the vent well neck. The best water is demineralized or distilled.
Equalize charge on a weekly basis. Some chargers will automatically do this – but if you are unsure, check with your sales rep.
Twice a year, clean and neutralize your batteries. This will help prolong the life of your batteries.
At the same time, have a battery technician check specific gravity readings, cell temperatures and voltages.

Find the right battery for your forklift:

How to permit pallet racking for your warehouse

The information below will help guide you through the permitting process of installing pallet racking in your warehouse. This includes a building and safety or fire safety permit.

Pallet Rack - single selective — Single selective pallet racking

Please note, the process may vary in your municipality or county.

Warehouse Racking Permitting Guide

This guide is designed to explain, in close detail, the complicated process of permitting pallet racking. A check-list of the documents you will require is listed below. You will need this information to acquire a Building and Safety or Fire Safety permit:

Building and Safety (Fire Safety Permit)

1. Complete Project Address/Location.

2. Warehouse Building Drawings

a. Site Plans

b. Slab Construction Details

c. Roof Plans

d. Sprinkler Plans

3. Wet Stamped Warehouse Project Drawings

a. Layout Plan- AutoCAD Warehouse Design

b. Detail Elevation Drawings (from seismic engineer)

4. Seismic Structural Calculations for Pallet Rack

5. Pallet Rack Installation Contractor Information

a. Name

b. Address

c. Contractor License Number

d. Workers Compensation & Liability Insurance

e. Business License

6. Valuation of Total Project

a. Total $(dollar) Amount of Sale

Pallet Rack Installation

7. City Permit Fees

a. Plan Check Fee for Building & Safety Permit Application

b. Plan Check Fee for Fire Safety Permit Application

c. Building & Safety Permit Fee.

d. Fire Safety Permit Fee.

8. Filing for a Pallet Rack Permit

You will need this information for the following reasons:

Determine Seismic Zone

1. Project address must be complete with the user name, street address, city, zip code and city plot number if available. This is required by the engineer to insert into the title block of the presentation drawings and calculation documents. The city will not process building or fire permits without this data. This information is required to determine, among other things, the seismic zone of the pallet rack being erected.

Floor Load Bearing Characteristics

2. Building drawings from original “as-built” constructions drawings at time of completion and any remodel of interior conditions of existing building. These include sub-floor compaction and concrete floor thickness. This information is required by the engineer when looking at the floor’s ability to hold a weighted load.

Warehouse Sprinklers

It is important to for the engineers to know if the project is in a new or older building. Your fire engineer will need to review the current sprinkler drawings showing mains and capacity on the lines and sprinkler head spacing with density.

Building Exits

Drawings must clearly indicate all egress exits, stairways, man doors, tunnels, elevators, and methods to exit the building. The seismic engineer will require this data for pre-calculations and final submittals.

Pallet Rack Aisle Spacing and Beam Level Heights

3. Drawings indicate each rack, shelving, mezzanine, conveyor, carousels or any new system layout and elevations. These will also show systems details, such as aisle spacing, beam level heights of the proposed rack system, for Mezzanine and Catwalk Systems the drawings will indicate type of flooring being used, elevations and indicate the “live deck loading” of the floor. The seismic engineer will require this data for the final calculations and to “wet stamp” the approved drawings.

Seismic Calculations from Seismic Engineer

4. Seismic calculations show the rack being provided is seismically safe and meets the required loads. The seismic engineer must be registered and licensed in the city and the state in which the project is to be installed. In most cases, your racking solution provider will prepare the drawing package containing the layout and elevations of the proposed system. The drawing package will then be sent to the seismic engineer for final calculations.

Pallet Rack Installer / Contractor Details

5. The permits must also show the Installer/Contractor being used for the project along with all their pertinent information.

a. It must show your contractor’s name and or full business name

b. The current business address of the contractor

c. A valid contractor’s license number. (Ask to see this from your racking solution provider before placing your racking order.)

d. Any pertinent insurance information as requested such as workers compensation & liability insurance coverage.

i. Any and all approved licensed installers must have maximum insurance coverage as stipulated by the city permitting agency and as governed under the racking solution provider’s contract documents for associated sub-contractors.

ii. Workman Compensation Insurance and property damage insurance form, a valid carrier naming all parties related to any specific liability for failure to comply within the spirit of the initial contract. Some insurance carriers underwrite installers for $1 Million and others up to $2 million. Check with racking solution provider’s business office for legal and liability considerations.

e. Current Business License filed with the city in which the installation or work is to be done. This is a tax assessed to the installer. He may wish to absorb this annual cost as part of the installation quote to racking solution provider, or he has the option to pass this tax along to your racking solution provider as part of the installation expense. He may very well find other business in that city using your contribution for his city license.

Project Valuation and Permit Fee

6. At time of permitting, it is required to stipulate the total valuation of the project (total dollar sale of entire project). For example, at the time you file for a permit with the city clerk you will be asked the total dollar amount of the job/project. If the material, installation, engineering, permit submittal fees, tax and freight amount to $90,437, this would be the “Valuation Total of Project”. Based on this figure the city will assess a percent of the value for costs to process the plan check and permit fees, additionally the high-pile storage fee and any inspection fees on top.

Call the City Building Department for Answers

7. In order to estimate the permit fees for your project, you can call the city building department in advance, give them an approximate valuation of the project and the city will give you the permit fee cost over the phone subject to the date of final permit application and actual valuation of project. Do not be coy; ask any questions you need or concerns you may have. The direct approach is best.

Some cities contract to counties, sister city building departments or outside permitting agencies for review and approval of permits. This can increase the permit cost.

Typical Cost For Permitting Pallet Rack Example

a. Hypothetical Sample
i. Valuation of Project: $90,437.00
ii. Plan Check Fee: $412.00 (Varies by city)
iii. Permit Fee: $518.00 (Varies by city)
iv. High Pile Permit Fee: $300.00 (Varies by city)
v. Fire Inspection Fee: $120.00 (Varies by city)

Approvals and Sign Off

8. Once all your information is gathered, you or your project manager will then proceed with filing for and obtaining the necessary building permits, approvals, and sign-off. This may include high pile storage permits if required.

a. With a complete set of approved drawings, seismic calculations, pre-printed check made payable to the city for the permitting fees, your project manager may then proceed with filing for permit. Your project manager will need to fill any necessary forms required by the city. It is important to have all the information of the installer/contractor being used. Make sure to keep copies of forms, receipts for fees paid, and plan check turn-around.

b. In most cases, you will now be sent to the city fire department. The fire Marshal will expect full set of drawings showing all the details as mentioned above along with fire code permitting fees. This is a separate fee, which in many cities requires a separate check. The fire department/marshal does not require seismic calculations for the proposed project. If the drawings are approved, the fire department/marshal will stamp the drawings. You must transmit the complete package back to the city building department for their final structural analysis. Note: Most city building departments will not process your drawings and permit until stamped by their respective fire department. If this is the case, nothing will happen until the fire department/marshal stamp and sign off on the drawings.

c. The application with the drawings (stamped by the fire dept.) is now back at the building department. With supporting calculations and the fire code resolved, in some cases you should have the city engineering approval within a few days. This will vary greatly from city to city and county to county. You should call ahead and ask the city department on their turn-around time for review and approval. It is also a good idea to ask if they have an expediting service.

d. You will now have a notice from the city that your permit is ready, drawings stamped, approved and fire coded approved. Pick up your drawings with the calculations, send one (1) set to the job site for city inspection, and be sure the you, the end user, has a set for future reference.

e. The final step is to schedule a field inspection after installation is completed. At this point, if approved, the rack can be loaded.

Permit information links in the LA area

City of Santa Fe Springs

City of Santa Clarita (Valencia)

For permitting help, contact a professional material handling company in your area.

Types of forklift batteries – Different batteries explained

Understanding different types of forklift batteries

Let’s look at the types of forklift batteries commonly found in warehouses today.

Information and History of a Forklift Battery

Invented in 1859 by French physician Gaston Planté, lead-acid was the first battery technology put to commercial use. Lead-acid batteries continue to be the leading source of stored energy for forklifts, golf carts, wheelchairs and automobiles. The reason for this lies in its reliability and relative low cost.

types of forklift batteries — Forklift Batteries

Charging a forklift battery

Lead-acid batteries (forklift batteries) are fairly slow to recharge and must be stored in a fully charged state. Charging is required every 30 days to avoid sulfation, which can rob the battery of its ability to be recharged.

Preventing damage to a forklift battery

Another condition to be careful to avoid is deep-cycling. When a battery is deeply discharged, the strain shortens its life. Attention should be paid to keep the battery above the lower discharge limit. Many forklifts will prevent overdischarge by showing 0% charge when the battery is at 20%.

Life expectancy for a lift truck’s battery

Forklift lead acid batteries usually have work life of 1500 cycles or more. Maintaining charging and watering records will help you to collect on your manufacturers warranty. Battery companies can check how the battery was charged, watered and discharge by using a destructive cell analysis that will show grid corrosion, depletion of active material from the grid inside the cell and positive plate growth. With photographs of the damage, a larger or smaller short life credit will be offered to encourage you to purchase another battery of the same brand. Good records will increase your negotiating position.

How heavy is a forklift battery?

Though lead-acid batteries have a low energy density compared to other battery technologies, due to the weight of the lead, they provide an important source of ballast. A typical 3000 lbs capacity reach truck needs at least 1900 lbs of ballast weight to counterweight the load being lifted. Lead-acid batteries, therefore provide more than just a rechargeable energy supply but are integral in the safe operation of the forklift.

Plate thickness and ballast weight

More than just for ballast, the weight of a battery can predict the service life of a battery. Because a thicker positive plate has more active material to corrode and shed as sediment to the bottom of the battery, the weight of a battery is a good indication of the lead content and therefore the life expectancy. Ask your battery supplier for the weight of their battery to help compare value for money.

Forklift batteries have plates that exceed 1/4” (6mm). Most industrial flooded deep-cycle batteries use lead-antimony plates that improves the plate life but increases gassing and water loss.

Sealed lead-acid forklift battery

Maintenance-free batteries are a popular option for use in controlled working environments such as pharmaceutical manufacturing. pallet trucks (electric pallet jacks) as they can operate in any position. The acid inside the forklift battery is made into a gel and sealed inside the cell. Valved cell caps allow for venting during charging. The loss of moisture shortens the life of the maintenance-free battery over time. Many manufacturers recommend operating the battery always above 40% discharge but below 80% discharge to extend the life of the battery. These types of batteries do not last long when deeply discharged or over-charged.

Temperature of forklift battery

The optimum operating temperature for the lead-acid battery is 25*C (77*F). Higher temperatures reduce longevity. As a guideline, every 8 degrees Celsius (15 degrees F) rise in temperature will cut the battery life in half. A valve-regulated lead-acid battery, which would last for 10 years at 25C (77F), will only be good for 5 years if operated at 33C (95F). Theoretically the same forklift battery would last a little more than one year at a desert temperature of 42C (107F).

Absorbed Glass Mat Batteries (AGM) for forklifts

German high performance cars us AGM batteries due to their durability and ability to endure extensive shock and vibration. This technology is sealed and maintenance free, however are almost twice the cost of flooded lead-acid batteries. By using absorbed glass mats between the plates, the batteries recombine the oxygen and hydrogen inside the cells and lose almost not water.

Pros and Cons of Lead-Acid forklift batteries

Pros

Inexpensive and simple to manufacture.
Mature, reliable and well-understood technology – when used correctly, lead-acid is durable and provides dependable service.
The self-discharge is among the lowest of rechargeable battery systems.
Capable of high discharge rates.

Cons

Low energy density – poor weight-to-energy ratio limits use to stationary and wheeled applications.
Cannot be stored in a discharged condition – the cell voltage should never drop below 2.10V.
Allows only a limited number of full discharge cycles – well suited for standby applications that require only occasional deep discharges.
Lead content and electrolyte make the forklift battery environmentally unfriendly.
Transportation restrictions on flooded lead-acid – there are environmental concerns regarding spillage.
Thermal runaway can occur if improperly charged.

For a great resource on various types of battery technologies, please visit: http://batteryuniversity.com