Thursday, April 25, 2013

Freight and Logistics Clients Can Choose Latest Electric Reach Truck

Jungheinrich Have New Model Available in Time for Multimodal Show
Shipping News Feature

UK – Appearing at the Multimodal logistics exhibition in Birmingham this week fork lift and materials handling supplier Jungheinrich had yet another model to promote to add to the company’s already extensive range. The company boasts that it is the world’s most popular sit-on reach truck manufacturer and with so many supporters in the freight quarter of the supply chain using its equipment for racking and stacking work the claim may well not be groundless. The logistics show proved a suitable place to promote the latest addition to the company’s fleet, the ETV318.

The new truck benefits from a fully sealed electronic controller and custom-designed onboard software specifically tailored for forklift truck use. Because it is bespoke the software helps to increase both truck reliability and energy efficiency still further and can link the truck to the user’s warehouse management system. This enables the ETV 318 to semi automatically raise the forks to the correct height for the operator to perform the pick or pallet put-away operation. So, when linked to a site’s WMS, the ETV 318 becomes, in effect, a semi-automated truck.

Having a truck available in a number of configurations means clients can tailor the model to their own requirements prior to delivery. For instance, if the user’s application involves frequent lower level pallet movements with longer travel times between stops, the truck can be set-up to offer faster travel speed. Alternatively, if the user demands higher mast movements with shorter journeys between picks or pallet put-away, the ETV 318 can be configured with higher mast lifting speeds.

The new model has a capacity of 1800kg and can lift a 1000kg load up to 11.5 metres, more than enough for the average everyday cargo stacking/unstacking movement. To ensure maximum performance whilst minimizing operating costs both regenerative braking and regenerative mast lowering features (at high lift heights) means that every time an operator brakes or lowers the forks, the ETV 318 reclaims the excess energy and uses it to charge the battery using the latest generation AC technology.

Because it is made from the latest high strength laminated glass (as used on military-grade vehicles) the roof not only offers a clear view upwards but also ensures that the operator is protected from falling objects whilst working from an ergonomically designed seat intended to reduce driver fatigue. Jonathan Morris, Sales Director of Jungheinrich UK Ltd, commented:

“Jungheinrich developed its first reach truck over 50 years ago and, since then, the company has gone on to set new standards in reach truck design. No forklift truck manufacturer sells more sit-on reach trucks globally than Jungheinrich and the ETV 318 is an exciting upgrade of the world’s best-selling sit on reach truck range. Our new range has been developed in line with our ‘Best Invest’ promise which aims to keep a truck user’s forklift fleet operating costs to a minimum.

“We believe that the ETV 318 offers class-leading productivity and the lowest costs of energy usage on the market. We can back-up our claims with research that compares our reach truck range with some of the other reach truck brands on the market. In a recent workshop held to test our reach truck against four competitor models based on the internationally recognised materials handling industry ‘VDI’ cycle which measures pallets moved and energy consumed during a defined route.

“On average, our competitors’ reach trucks used 30% more energy during the VDI cycle than the Jungheinrich reach truck and achieved an average of 24% less throughput during the same cycle. That’s why we can say that the Jungheinrich reach truck range delivers more for less!”