In the below short logistics learning video (an extract from our course Introduction to warehousing), we present certain warehouse handling equipment such as forklifts, pallet trucks, order pickers and more. Learn about the equipment used to unload, move and handle goods in warehouses.
Below the video you can find an illustrated written transcript of it.
Forklifts – the key warehouse handling equipment
Forklift trucks, as their name indicates, are trucks equipped with lifting forks. They are self-propelled and are designed to lift and move cargo over short distances.
In warehouses, they are generally used to offload cargo from trucks, move it over relatively short distances, and offload it on the floor, or stack it on racks.
Many variants exist, such as smaller nimble indoor-only versions, outdoor heavy-duty forklifts, or articulate ones, like below, designed for narrow aisle warehouses.
Reach truck
Reach trucks have front outer legs which enable better weight distribution, and this means, they are smaller than forklifts, they also have extendible forks and can therefore work in narrow aisles and tighter spaces.
Their lifting masts are often higher, as they are designed to be typically used in high-racking warehouses.
Variants exist, such as the stock picker reach truck where the operator will in fact be in a basket to pick / retrieve high placed smaller items.
Pallet truck
Pallet trucks (pump truck, pallet jack, hand truck) are tools used to slightly lift pallets off the ground and move them over short distances.
Electric self-propelled versions exist, and, in some cases, the operators may ride on the pallet truck instead of walking it. In the manual version, the handle is also the hand-powered jack, used to lift the pallet slightly off the ground, prior to moving it.
Other warehouse handling equipment
Many other equipment is used to move, lift and handle cargo in a warehouse, such as simple hand trucks, complex electric order picker carts, trolleys pushed or pulled manually, or using warehouse tractors, drum lifters, and carriers, pick and pack trolleys, and many more general or specialized equipment.
All this equipment is also supported by fixed or semi-fixed warehouse features, such as cranes, conveyor belts, scales, racks, and shelves.
We hope you like this short article and video on warehouse handling equipment useful and, if interested, please do take a look at our course Introduction to warehousing – or for more handling equipment you can take a look at our Gantry cranes in action article.
