Forklifts and Fuel Choices in Today’s World – Trending Toward Electrification

As our world continues to go green, sustainability is rapidly becoming a common-place theme. Investment in forklift fuel choices in recent years has been increasing significantly and now many fuel choices are available for forklifts.

For decades, common fuel choices have been propane, diesel, electric lead-acid battery, and compressed natural gas.

During more recent years, additional fuel choices have been added including Electric Lithium and Electric Hydrogen Fuel Cell. Advantages of Electric Lithium and Electric Hydrogen Fuel Cells include very rapid re-charge and very long life as compared to conventional electric lead-acid. No spare batteries, no sulfuric acid, no maintenance and steady energy delivery are also are additional advantages.

Today’s forklift trends are leaning heavily towards electrification, due in part to the ability to re-charge fully in 1-2 hours, increased performance, increased operator productivity, and lower cost of operation.

What fuel is best for you? The probable answer can depend on many factors such as available fuels/power in your building and the workload of your forklifts. A power study can be very helpful and is easily accomplished in a few weeks’ time.

However, if you are desiring to going green, odds are in your favor of successfully going with electrification in today’s world.

Important Reminder about the new Diesel Engines

Modern technology has done an unbelievable job of cleaning up diesel exhaust emissions. The diesel emission systems require us to do some things differently than we have done in the past. A bad habit from diesel’s past has to do with fuel filter changes. Many old-school diesel men would prefill their filters with either pump diesel or automatic transmission fluid to save time purging air from the fuel system. Virtually all modern diesel engine manufacturers now warn against prefilling fuel filters during routine filter changes, even though the fuel coming from the fuel suppliers meets motor fuel cleanliness specification for the common rail fuel system without additional filtration. When we prefill our filters we introduce into the system fuel which does not meet the required cleanliness specification. The clearances in a modern, high-pressure, common rail fuel system are magnitudes tighter than the engines of the past, and as a result, the components are easily damaged by what, in the past, would’ve been considered perfectly acceptable fuel.

The big point that the engine manufacturers want to make is that “pump fuel” isn’t clean enough anymore. In order to be considered acceptable, it must pass through the manufacturer’s recommended filters if we are to expect our engines to have the long life that we have become accustomed to with a diesel engine.

Dock Equipment 101

A dock leveler is a piece of equipment that is usually either mounted to the dock face or recessed into a pit at a loading dock door allowing movement of industrial vehicles between a building and a transport vehicle. Proper dock design and equipment selection have a tremendous impact on the entire supply chain and logistical efficiency of a warehouse’s day-to-day operations. The power behind dock levelers is varied, and each has its benefits. Below is a list of the three standard types of levelers:

First, mechanical dock levelers use a spring system to help pop into place, usually by pulling a chain in the base to release the latch mechanism. These are the most basic levelers and use the least amount of technology.

Second, air lift dock levelers use inflated air bags to help lift a dock into place. The air hose system is powerful and durable yet people sometimes find the bags are expensive to replace when they wear out. These levelers can be manufactured to different weight and pressure specifications.

Third, hydraulic lift levelers are very durable and use hydraulic fluid to lift a wide range of heavy-duty levelers. They are best suited for high-volume facilities and are some of the safest systems around. Hydraulic levelers are highly rated by those that use them, but not everyone wants to invest in them because of the higher price tag.

Loading dock systems are critical to the value of any industrial facility. Maintaining a clean, serviceable, and efficient warehouse saves money and makes production processes more efficient and seamless. Quality dock door systems are one of the best investments you can make to improve these types of facilities because they come so highly valued. Along with your dock leveler, you should consider a truck restraint safety system as well.

Preparing for a Return to Normalcy

The year 2020 was largely defined by change due to COVID-19. Businesses changed what they could to continue operations while keeping employees and customers safe. Now, with the arrival of 2021, we are beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel, and hoping COVID is behind us soon. With that, here are a few tools to help your warehouse(s) transition back to a normal environment.

Wire Cages:

Wire cages allow for customers to enter your warehouse and interact face to face, while also keeping them off your floor and a safe distance from most of your associates. Not only are they a great social distancing tool as we hopefully near the end of this pandemic, but they are also a great security measure as they keep people off of your floor. Doing so protects your inventory from theft or contamination, and protects you from liability if they were to somehow get injured.

Proximity Tags:

Proximity tags are new, wearable tags that vibrate when your employees become too close to one another. These tags will also be helpful post-COVID, as you can use the tags to focus on preventing collisions or keeping certain areas/lanes from overcrowding.

Automation, Warehouse Design Simulation & AutoCAD:

Unfortunately, COVID has changed the way warehouses operate. Social distancing may be with us longer than expected and many companies are taking this opportunity to rearrange their warehouse layout. A strong tool to assist with realizing the optimal warehouse layout change(s), is a warehouse design simulation. We’re seeing a large increase in automation, warehouse simulations and AutoCAD requests to help with these layout changes. The latter two programs allow for possible changes to be seen before actually being incorporated.

Winter Safety Tip

Tailpipe carbon monoxide emissions are at an all-time low. Don’t be lulled into a false sense of security though. Assuming proper function and maintenance, the emissions have been over 80% reduced from previous generations. The important thing to remember is that emissions haven’t been reduced 100% YET. This means that as part of sealing our warehouse up to stay warm, we should double-check the status of our carbon monoxide detectors as well.

If you are still running a non-emission controlled piece of material handling equipment, give our service department a call to schedule a tailpipe co-check.

Section 179 Tax Savings

Do you know about Section 179 End-of-Year Savings Opportunities?
Significant tax savings are available for new or used equipment financed or purchased and put into service between January 1, 2020 and December 31, 2020.

New and used lift trucks qualify for Section 179 tax-savings.

Section 179 at a Glance for 2020

(Please see your tax preparer for your specific situation)

2020 Deduction Limit = $1,040,000.00
This deduction is good on new and used equipment. To take the deduction for tax year 2020, the equipment must be financed or purchased and put into service between January 1, 2020 and December 31, 2020.

2020 Spending Cap on Equipment Purchased/Leases = $2,590,000.00

This is the maximum amount that can be spent on equipment before the Section 179 deduction available to your company begins to be reduced on a dollar for dollar basis.

2020 Bonus Depreciation = 100%

Bonus Depreciation is generally taken after the Section 179 Spending Cap is reached. 2020 Bonus Depreciation is currently available for both new and used equipment.

For more details on limits and qualifying equipment, as well as Section 179 qualified financing, please contact us and we will be happy to help you.

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Spring Cleaning

With the warm weather upon us, it is the perfect time to clean, inspect and take inventory before the cold weather hits. Open the hood, check to see if there is any dust or debris that could be clogging the radiator.

While you’re there, take stock of any oily residue. Check that any required maintenance hasn’t been neglected over the past 3 months. One required maintenance item that is easily overlooked: a lot of smaller trucks are equipped with timing belts that require routine replacement. Some are required to be replaced in as little as 2,000 hours, some will go as far as 3,500 hours. Should a timing belt slip, the camshaft will not be in time, the cheap result is that the engine simply won’t start until the belt is replaced. The expensive result is that the timing slips in such as way that internal parts (valves and pistons) make contact with one another, requiring a bare minimum of a premature valve job. A little time now will pay dividends when the cold weather rolls in.

When should you consider a Vertical Lift in your Operation

The following are some key points to look at as you review your space and operation.

Recover vast amounts of floor space. Up to 80%, by eliminating rows of conventional static shelving, pallet racks and modular drawer cabinets. Vertical lifts have a very small footprint, yet they can utilize the full height of any facility up to 80′ and deliver the stored items automatically when requested. Customers utilize their previously unused overhead space, to store more in less space.

Increase employee productivity by eliminating the need for workers to walk long distances and climb ladders in search of items in storage. All stock is in the same place at all times. Customers can do more in less time with fewer people.

Improve inventory control by utilizing onboard, high-performance inventory management systems that easily interface with your existing platform. Customers improve the accuracy of their inventory to over 99%.

Increase security or limit access to stored inventory using electronic or mechanical systems that provide an audit trail of activity. Customers know who signed out items, and when, reducing errors and theft.

Improve workplace ergonomics by delivering all stored inventory to a safe, waist-high level in accordance with OSHA requirements. No more bending down to pick up heavy items, or reaching up to access bulky products stored above, or climbing ladders. All of the product is delivered to the same ergonomically-correct location every time.