Material handling equipment can make your process efficient saving time and money.  Selecting the right forklift makes the difference between a safe or hazardous work conditions.  Size definitely matters particularly when it comes to aisle space.  A typical electric standup forklift lift capacity is 3,000 pounds with 9 feet in length to the tip of the forks so you should have a minimum of 11 feet to account for the pallet when turning into or out of the racks.  Having adequate space allows the operator to perform much faster with far less obstruction and lower probability of damaging the rack or merchandise.  For smaller aisles you may consider the reach trucks that come in single or double reach capabilities. Reach trucks allow for higher racks to maximize your warehouse space vertically, some reach trucks raise 4,000 pounds above 400 inches in approximately 9 feet aisle space.  The double reach also know as deep reach looses weight capacity down to 3,000 pounds but gains the ability to have racks set back to back where the deep reach can manipulate the a pallet to the rear rack from the same aisle.  Picture 4 racks back to back using 2 aisles increasing your warehouse space capacity.

Reach truck limitations include the inability to load or offload because of the outriggers and typically the height will not fit into a trailer or container.  The outriggers may get caught on the dock plate or a short ramp due to the transition in degree of elevation from a dock down to the ground level.

Feel free to email your questions or call us, we can help you make the right decision for your facilities size and requirements.