If last year’s figures are anything to go by, Christmas orders will soon start to pile up as businesses and consumers get ready in advance for the busiest time of the year. September 2012 saw UK shoppers spend £6.4bn online, 11% more than in August 2012, which shows a steep and sudden increase. Figures are expected to be even higher this year as people attempt to shop for cheap online deals as they struggle to overcome person recessions. Shoppers start their Christmas lists at around this time every year, and retailers must respond to this demand by preparing plenty of goods for their perusal; this means that the Christmas season starts early for all those in factories and warehouses who depend on pallet trucks and other manual handling equipment to fulfil orders and dispatch them in a timely manner.
Phil Chesworth, Managing Director of Pallet Truck Shop, one of the country’s leading providers of hand pallet trucks, says, “Around September, retailers must figure out how they are going to deal with the inevitable Christmas rush, and for many this includes drafting in new equipment to help them manage the increased workload. From the delivery process to the actual picking and packing orders, pump trucks, manual stacker trucks, sack trucks and lift tables will be essential in the fulfilment of orders quickly and efficiently this festive season.”
The massive increase in orders over the next few months will mean that the picking and packing process needs to be at the height of efficiency to ensure there is no mounting backlog of orders. The process can be made much speedier with the addition of a new manual stacker truck; available in different heights with varying lifting capabilities, the trucks can retrieve goods or stack them at height, which is perfect for large warehouses which need to get their goods into delivery bays as efficiently as possible. They are made from robust and hardwearing steel, meaning that they will not only prove a useful tool for this Christmas, but also for many Christmases to come.
Of course, once the stock has been picked from the shelves, there needs to be some form of equipment that can transport it quickly and easily to a distribution bay or packing area. Hand pallet trucks provide a lightweight and simple option, rather than training up numerous staff members in how to use a forklift. They can carry up to 2.5 tonnes of cargo at any time, and come with various different capabilities for diversity in the workplace; with weighing scales, wider forks or the ability to traverse down narrow warehouse aisles, adding to a fleet of pallet trucks is crucial in the run up to the busiest quarter of the year.
Once stock has been packed it can be moved out for shipping and distribution with the help of a hand pallet truck. The most versatile of all trucks, hand pallet trucks are lightweight and easy to manoeuvre, as well as being able to carry up to 2500kg of cargo at any given time. The different typed of hand pallet truck, including long pallet trucks, traverse pallet trucks and rough terrain trucks ensure that goods can be carried across any surface and within many restricted environments, and their ease of use make them a must for this busy Christmas season.