The lift truck has become a crucial piece of machine able to raise and move products and heavy supplies with both speed and efficiency. The way a company utilizes this machine can considerably affect its productivity.
A common storage technique is Free Stacking Pallets. This is a way to utilize your forklift that is both economical and easy. Free Stacking Pallets involves positioning one pallet on top of another to make a stack of products. This is a stable storage method and is recommended when handling many pallets of the same height and dimensions or large amounts of the same product. The drawback of this system is that it just allows access to the objects put last, so it does not enable a First In First Out system.
It is vital to have a pallet racking method which involves the stable storage of different sized pallets. Using a First In First Out or Last In First Out method, will allow for easy access of any pallet. It allows the rack to change shape and grow depending upon daily needs. This particular system needs aisles that are wide enough to allow a lift truck to maneuver easily and to freely access the racks. The downside is that this particular method means less pallets could be handled within the setting. This might not matter if there is sufficient space available.
Like Pallet Racking, the method called Narrow Aisle Racking allows a First In First Out or Last In First Out method. It differs in that a special narrow forklift is used. This means that smaller spaces are required between the aisles of pallets than in the Pallet Racking method. The benefit is that much more product can be kept in the same space. The downside is that you will have to transition to a different type of truck if you already own a standard lift truck. The cost of obtaining special machines may be a deterrent to implementing this technique of storage.
It is vital to utilize your lift truck to its full potential. It pays to consider your time expenses in storage and retrieval of pallets. Afterward you could find out whether there are more effective means to utilize your lift truck to increase the usable area of your units or to speed up the process. Greater effectiveness equals greater profitability.