Choosing the right forklift for your business is actually harder than it seems. One of the main reasons for this is the difficulty of ensuring that you’re comparing apples with apples when it comes to all the features that the equipment offers and its power source. Throw in rental prices that vary between suppliers and even specific models, and it’s not hard to see why difficulties arise.
In this article, we’ve taken a closer look at how you can choose the right forklift for your business at the best possible price:
You don’t want to pay for more power than you need, nor do you want to rent a forklift that’s underpowered and not suitable for the job at hand. The equipment with the highest load ratings are diesel and gas, whilst the needs of most warehouses can be met with an electric model. It pays to take a close look at your load capacities and add a buffer for safety.
As we’ve already touched on, there is three available power sources for forklifts – diesel, gas and electric. Diesel models are generally the most powerful, keep in mind that you’ll need to allow for fuel and maintenance costs. Gas models offer a long service life with low maintenance costs. Electric models tend to have the highest maintenance costs.
It’s important to consider whether the forklift will be used indoors or outdoors, whether it will be run on smooth concrete floors or rough terrain, and what sorts of materials will be lifted. Diesel and gas models are intended for outdoor use only; they emit fumes that could be harmful in enclosed areas. Electric models can be used indoors safely.
This will vary between suppliers, so you need to be sure that your chosen one is set up to offer maintenance and repairs using genuine or approved parts. If your rental breaks down or experiences an issue, we will attend to it immediately and will also provide you with a replacement forklift to ensure that your deadlines are not impacted.
We hope that the information provided above has enabled you to choose the right forklift at the best possible price. Whilst it’s important to remember that you get what you pay for, this doesn’t mean that you should be forced to spend an arm and a leg on equipment for your business. There are ways to ensure that you get the power you need in a model that is safe and affordable.