Capital Equipment News March 2019

COVER STORY

GAINING GROUND

A growing trend in the global forklift industry is the move towards battery- powered forklifts. In line with global trends, Goscor Lift Truck Company (GLTC), a supplier of leading forklift brands, reports an increase in demand of electrical forklifts in Southern Africa. On the back of the increased uptake, GLTC has just introduced the new Doosan electric 7 Series, a four-wheel counterbalance forklift truck range, writes Munesu Shoko .

I n its recent report, research company Technavio forecasts that the global battery-powered forklift market will grow at a CAGR of 9% from 2018- 2022. In line with global trends, Darryl Shafto, MD of GLTC, says there has been a notable move towards electrical forklifts in southern Africa. To give an idea, GLTC recently delivered a big order of 55 Doosan B35-Pro7 four-wheel counter balance electric forklift trucks to AB InBev (previously SAB), as opposed to the gas trucks the beverage company usually bought from GLTC. What are the key drivers of the trend? From a sector perspective, Shafto reasons that electric lift trucks are particularly popular in the food and bottling, retail and distribution sectors. “These industries prefer electric forklifts due to their low greenhouse gas emissions and noise levels. Apart from the environmental benefits, electric forklifts also offer lower running costs compared with their internal combustion engine counterparts. Bear in mind that fuel is a major cost component of most logistics operations, and any opportunity to cut this cost is most welcome,” says Shafto. According to Shafto, from a cost perspective, a battery-powered forklift can be as much as 50% cost-effective to run than a diesel comparative. For example, the cost of propelling an electric forklift is 50% less than the cost of propelling an internal combustion engine forklift. “Additionally, electric forklifts generally have a longer lifespan than internal combustion engine forklifts. With electric forklifts, services are less frequent – where you need three services with an internal combustion engine forklift, you need one with an electric unit – translating into huge cost savings,” he says.

Meeting electric demand As the market for battery-powered forklifts takes off in South Africa, with its wide range of electric forklifts in the stable, GLTC is equipped to meet local customers’ needs. For example, its principal, Crown, only manufactures electrics which target the warehousing sector – such as the powered pallet truck range (WP, WPS, WT and GPC), the three-wheel counter balance (SCT) and reach trucks (ESR). Meanwhile, Doosan is targeting the four-wheel counter balance market, which is traditionally dominated by gas and diesel- powered ranges. This is regarded as the benchmark for electric trucks in four key areas: productivity, ergonomics, safety and serviceability. GLTC has since launched Doosan’s new range of four-wheel electric counterbalance forklift trucks, said to offer greater durability, enhanced productivity, increased visibility and a range of safety features as standard. With four new models covering a capacity range from 1,5 to 5 t, the range is suited to a number of industries, from manufacturing, wholesale distribution and food & drink to engineering, building

supplies and transport and warehousing.

Key features Durability is a major design focus area on the new Doosan 7 Series electric models. “Durability for outside duty is assured with IP65 and IP43 rated Curtis AC controllers and motors, offering maximum resilience to

“Electric forklifts generally have a longer lifespan than internal combustion engine forklifts. With electric forklifts, services are also less frequent – where you need three services with an internal combustion engine forklift, you need one with an electric unit – translating into huge cost savings.”

Darryl Shafto, MD of Goscor Lift Truck Company

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