In warehouse and manufacturing environments, the kinds of equipment which drivers use to shuttle supplies from one place to another are known as forklifts. The machine carries pallets, also referred to as skids, that are loaded with items. The lift truck is made with forks that insert into the pallet rungs. Forklifts are also sometimes called Lift Trucks, Pallet Trucks, High/Low, Skid Trucks, Stacker-Trucks and Side Loaders.
The first forklifts were marketed during the early part of the 1900s by companies like Clark and Yale & Towne Manufacturing. These days most supplies are delivered to warehouses and stores on pallets. Forklifts are normally found in manufacturing plants and warehouses, where they are depended upon to operate the business smoothly.
The following are some of the various types of pallet or skid lifts: Walkie low lift truck - with electrical motor; Rider low lift truck; Hand pallet truck; Towing tractor; IC counterbalanced truck; Sideloader; Telescopic handler; Rider stacker; Slip Sheet machine; Walkie stacker; Walkie Order Picking truck; Reach truck; Electric counterbalanced truck; Rider Order Picking truck - also known as "Order Picker"; Articulated Very Narrow Aisle Counterbalanced trucks - also called "Flexi Truck"; Truck Mounted Forklift / Sod Loader; Guided Very Narrow Aisle truck; 'Man Down' - for narrow aisles; and 'Man Riser' Combination Order Picker/ Stacker truck
The articulated counterbalance truck is a kind of counterbalanced forklift truck that is used for specialized applications. This particular hybrid is suggested for very narrow aisles since it can offload and onload in really tight spaces.
The Guided Very Narrow Aisle Trucks are capable of lifting as high as 12 meters, and even up to 30 meters if it is a "non top-tied" version. These trucks are available in man down and man-riser models. This equipment should be used only on floors that are even and flat.