Think of energy saving, green policies and corporate social responsibility initiatives and the first items to come to mind are likely light bulbs, recycled paper, car sharing, public transport and perhaps local or organic produce. You can now add the standard pallet truck to that list as one major UK distribution centre says its pallet truck fleet is instrumental to saving energy and reducing its carbon footprint.
Ideal Stelrad Group is a radiator and boiler manufacturer with a 150,000 sq ft facility. In such a huge industrial environment, energy saving can have massive cost benefits as well as being advantageous to the local environment. While no distribution centre, factory or warehouse could remain efficient without pallet trucks to hand, the Group has taken its felt one step further and incorporated its pallet trucks into its quest for energy efficiency.
With almost 13,000 items a day passing through its doors, reliability and efficiency is key. It has fitted longer forks to its pallet trucks and repositioned load wheels to give greater handling flexibility. It estimates that these changes – along with modifications to its forklift trucks – will lead to a 30% reduction in energy usage and cut 300 tonnes of carbon.
For those businesses without the budget to invest in modifying a whole fleet of trucks or with more modest requirements, a small selection of well-picked pallet trucks can help to increase productivity and efficiency. A product such as a high lift pallet truck can also see costs cut by helping employees avoid repetitive strain injury associated with constantly bending to unload products from pallets.
A lightweight hand pallet truck is also a sensible investment being easily manoeuvrable and ideal for use in tight spaces. With generous weight capacities of 3000kg they can be used to move a number of pallets, making them indispensable in busy warehouses, factories and loading docks where time is money. Robust and durable, they are also designed to stand the test of time, reducing the need to spend cash on replacing – this in turn can help to reduce environmental impact.
To find out more about pallet trucks and developing an energy-conscious fleet, visit www.PalletTruckShop.co.uk