PRESS INFORMATION
October 2013
How tough trucks boost warehouse
performance
Reliability is the most important truck feature for many warehouse managers
according to research conducted by Hyster. But how do tough and reliable trucks
have an impact on warehouse performance?
“We know how drivers operate, what they are expected to do and the challenges they
encounter,” says Robert O’Donoghue, Senior Product Strategy Leader, NACCO
Materials Handling Group, explaining that the company has a deep understanding of all
kinds of warehouse applications.
“That is why Hyster has made such a significant investment in developing some of the
toughest and most reliable warehouse trucks on the market,” he says. “Our aim is to
keep businesses moving.”
Ongoing Hyster studies across major industries throughout the world have shown that
the reliability of handling equipment is one of the major impacts on warehouse
performance. Issues with reliability have a detrimental impact on costs, throughput and
driver productivity.
While reliability is fundamental, other factors contribute to the ultimate goal of reducing
the customer’s total cost of ownership, such as energy efficiency and truck
performance.
“Hyster has a full warehouse range from pallet trucks, stackers and reach trucks
through to order pickers and VNA (Very Narrow Aisle trucks), as well as electric
counterbalanced and compact LPG engine powered trucks. Common to all is the
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intelligent Hyster design bringing reliability, strength, low cost of operation and energy
efficiency to every application,” he says.
Electric forklifts
For businesses looking to reduce their carbon footprint, reduce their energy bills and
get better shift life, the powerful Hyster® JXN electric forklift range is one of the most
energy efficient on the market. With pneumatic and cushion tyre variants, the tough
1.5–5 tonne capacity models excel in indoor or outdoor arduous operations. In fact,
such robust design and outstanding traction was previously only expected from IC
trucks.
Pallet trucks and stackers
To enhance the operator’s productivity when transporting, stacking or loading pallets,
Hyster pallet and stacker trucks provide high reliability, power and precision with a low
cost of operation.
Order Pickers
Pick speed and reliability are essential in picking operations, and the Hyster low level
order picker with scooter like control is designed to get the best performance from
individual pickers, ensuring loads are placed at the optimum height for the operation
with maximum machine reliability. At height, pickers gain maximum pick face access
using the Hyster K series of rising cab order pickers, with fast simultaneous lift and
horizontal movement (using rails or wire guidance).
Very Narrow Aisle (VNA)
To maximise space with very narrow aisles and tall racking, the Hyster VNA truck has
been developed to help operators efficiently retrieve pallets in high intensity operations
up to 17m. To deliver one of the quickest VNA transits in the industry, the horizontal
movement intelligently combines with vertical movements, and the patented QUAD
form mast design provides unmatched rigidity and torsional strength, with proven
reliability.
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Reach Truck
As one of the most important trucks in any warehouse, the reach truck must deliver
maximum reliability and driver productivity to optimise pallet throughput. Offering travel
speeds of up to 14 km per hour and a lift speed of 0.8 metres per second, the new
Hyster Reach Truck has been designed to lift loads up to 12.5 metres. Residual
capacity is maintained to greater heights thanks to the new unique patented channel
mast design and visibility is enhanced through reduced total channel width.
Easy to control, the new reach truck gives superb narrow aisle manoeuvrability,
maximum reliability with proven components and it has a low step height to make it
easy for operators to get on and off during a busy shift.
The new Hyster reach truck is set to propel Hyster to the forefront of reach truck design,
now making the brand one of the strongest partners for warehouse operations all over
the world, especially when combined with the complete warehouse portfolio.
From concept through to launch, each new Hyster product follows a carefully structured
development process, including steps confirming that the product design will deliver all
the intended benefits to its users. Stringent testing and life-cycle simulation assure the
dependability of the truck design. Many tried and tested components are used across
the product range.
Product testing is an essential part of the production process. A 50 metre test track at
the NMHG factory in Masate, Italy, where most Hyster warehouse products are built,
enables equipment to be tested to their full capabilities. Tests include energy efficiency,
lift and travel speeds, productivity, and stability.
“Through strict quality testing, we develop products that we know will deliver reliability,
dependability and a low total cost of ownership” adds Robert. “To support the testing
carried out during development of the product, we also follow up with customers to
gather results from real life applications to give the inside story and the ‘proof’ we
provide to the rest of the world.”
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All Hyster manufacturing sites are ISO certified and employ world class manufacturing
technology and state of the art processes. The Hyster quality process is adhered to at
every manufacturing stage for every piece of equipment.
Further proof of the quality processes is the number of awards the NMHG Masate Plant
has received over the years. These include DFT certification for the company-wide
Demand Flow Technology system, ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certification and three
Regional Training Awards. In 2013 the plant also received OHSAS 18001 Certification
and produced approximately 20,000 units.
“Using 3D warehouse simulation software, we can demonstrate how our products will
work in the application before they are specified or implemented,” says Robert. ”The
Hyster warehouse simulator supports the decision making process by calculating
throughput and allowing the customer to visualise the impact of using different layouts
and truck combinations.”
Helping warehouse customers to specify the right mix of trucks, the 3D warehouse
simulation software from Hyster shows how the warehouse would work based on the
fleet or trucks recommended and core data provided about the warehouse dimensions
and the operation. The software tests different fleet options to identify output and cost
before companies make any investment in equipment.
Once in operation, the new Hyster Tracker, a Wireless Access Monitoring System,
enables effective fleet management helping to keep tough Hyster forklift trucks running
for even longer and even more productively.
Hyster works closely worldwide with a global network of local distribution partners. For
more information, visit www.hyster.eu.
ENDS – 1,055 Words
PRESS INFORMATION
NOTES TO EDITORS
Hyster is one of the leading global brands of materials handling equipment offering over 140
models of counterbalance trucks, warehouse and container handling equipment. The company
invests heavily in research and development to ensure Hyster® products are at the forefront of
the materials handling industry providing maximum dependability and low costs of ownership for
demanding operations everywhere.
Hyster Company is part of NACCO Materials Handling Group, Inc. (NMHG), a wholly owned
subsidiary of Hyster-Yale Materials Handling, Inc. (NYSE:HY). Hyster-Yale Materials Handling,
Inc. and its subsidiaries, headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, employ approximately 5,300 people
worldwide.
Visit www.hyster.eu for further information.
Issued on behalf of Hyster Europe by:
MOLOKINI MARKETING LTD
Press/Advertising contact : Nik Webb, Tel: +44 (0) 1903 207408
[email protected] | www.molokini.co.uk