The forklift has become a vital piece of machine that can raise and move things and heavy materials with both speed and efficiency. How a company utilizes this machine could considerably affect its profitability.
A popular storage method is Free Stacking Pallets. This is a way to utilize your lift truck that is economical and easy. Free Stacking Pallets involves placing one pallet on top of another to create a stack of products. This is a stable storage method and is recommended when handling huge amounts of the same goods, or many pallets of the same dimensions and height. The disadvantage of this specific technique is that it just allows access to the things placed last, so it does not allow a First In First Out system.
It is essential to have a pallet racking method that involves the stable storage of various sized pallets. Utilizing a First In First Out or Last In First Out system, will allow for easy access of any pallet. It allows the rack to change shape and grow depending upon every day needs. This system requires aisles which are wide enough to enable a forklift to maneuver easily and to freely access the racks. The disadvantage is that this specific method means fewer pallets could be handled in the setting. This may not matter if there is sufficient space available.
Like Pallet Racking, the method called Narrow Aisle Racking enables a First In First Out or Last In First Out technique. It varies in that a special narrow lift truck is used. This means that smaller spaces are required between the aisles of pallets than in the Pallet Racking method. The advantage is that more goods can be kept in the same area. The disadvantage is that you would have to transition to a different kind of truck if you already own a standard lift truck. The cost of obtaining special equipment might be a deterrent to implementing this system of storage.
Using your forklift to its fullest potential is important because it pays to analyze your retrieval costs and storage costs of pallets. After that you could find out whether there are more effective means to utilize your lift truck in order to accelerate the process or to increase the usable area of your units. Greater efficiency equals bigger profitability.