Food and drink manufacturers want their forklift truck operations to reduce costs, enhance efficiency and improve safety, according to truck suppliers. But the way they go about this may not always be as obvious as it seems.
While cheaper trucks are available from countries such as China, these can prove false economies when judged on a 'whole-life' basis, according to some experts in the field. The reason is that, although the initial cost of purchase may be much less than other trucks on the market, higher running and maintenance costs may more than outweigh any initial savings, they claim. Similarly, technology is available to make forklift operations safer and more efficient, but the UK Warehousing Association stresses that proper training of staff should be the primary consideration when looking to maximise the efficiency of truck operation and ensure a safe working environment.
At this year's International Materials Handling Exhibition, which takes place at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham from March 1922, visitors will have the opportunity to discuss different approaches to maximising the efficiencies of their forklift fleets with specialists in the business.
Richard Close, chief executive of forklift distributor Briggs, which handles Yale and Hyster trucks, claims that some Chinese forklift manufacturers produce high-quality trucks at prices that are sometimes 50% cheaper than many products on UK market. However, he cautions that purchasers should be wary since these trucks may not come with the same level of support and service offered by more expensive trucks.
"Chinese suppliers do not understand the importance of providing not only the truck, but the engineering support and parts, should something go wrong," says Close. "The price of the truck is only 13% of the [lifecycle] cost. 86% is the running and maintenance. If you buy a product from a firm that does not offer a full support service then you will lose the 50% you have saved because of running costs."
Close also argues that most food and drink operators are probably more interested in the efficiency and reliability of their trucks. So, the questions have to be asked: Is the truck fit for purpose? And if it does go wrong, will the support provided be speedy and reliable?
"There is not necessarily anything wrong with Chinese trucks, but I would encourage firms to look for the full package," says Michael Collier, chartered safety and health practitioner at Karen Brown Consulting. "Trucks do break down and you need the right person in place to help when this inevitability does happen."
Many suppliers, when agreeing on a contract, will provide their customers with a dedicated site specialist, offering a broad range of assistance, including operator training, fleet management and a speedy repair service. Buyers therefore need to be aware of what they are getting for their money.
The benefit of forming a good relationship with your truck supplier is key, according to most of the suppliers Food Manufacture spoke to. By taking this approach, the supplier will be more likely to understand the specific needs of businesses they are working with, says Close. Should the supplier see potential to cut costs by reducing the size of the truck fleet, for example, it would be more amenable to altering the original contract agreement, he adds.
You might wonder what incentive a truck supplier has for suggesting a customer reduce the size of his fleet. The answer is that most suppliers recognise it is in their interests to reduce the fleet size if this raises customer trust in them. After all, when it comes round to replacement, they are more likely to win the business.
"Support and transparency with each other is invaluable," says Paul Sercombe, sales director at forklift safety systems specialist Transmon Engineering. "The more the partner knows, the more they can support." Jonathan Morris, sales director at forklift manufacturer Jungheinrich, supports this view and advises any company running a forklift fleet to ensure its provider fully understands its needs and can guarantee the highest levels of service and support.
Fleet management systems
Morris argues that truck manufacturers need to be more than kit providers and should take on a more holistic responsibility for what they supply. For example, most forklift suppliers agree that one of the most effective ways of improving safety and efficiency within food factories is by making use of truck fleet management systems.
Briggs's latest fleet management system, called Speed Shield, allows users to monitor and control their trucks from any computer. It can control speed, monitor how long the engine has been running even check whether it has suffered any damage.
"Manufacturers want to save money and one of the best ways to do this is to reduce the size of a fleet," says Close. "This system has shown us that 80% of the time firms are wasting energy running a truck that is not in operation. This provides the opportunity to reduce the size of the fleet and potentially save hundreds of thousands of pounds."
But fleet management systems will only provide cost and efficiency gains if both user and truck supplier are involved and have a joint interest in improving truck operation, says Morris.
"Most firms have more trucks than they need," says Collier. "Fleet management systems should be used to improve efficiencies."
However, Sercombe believes the primary purpose of fleet management systems should be to reduce the number of accidents and improve truck operator performance.
Systems can reduce speed or even shut a truck down if it is moving too fast for the area it is operating in. Sercombe says systems could substantially reduce accidents involving pedestrians and forklifts. "The biggest problem facing food manufacturers is how to have factory floor workers and forklift truck operators working in close quarters safely," he says.
It is well known, he points out, that workers adopt bad habits after years spent driving forklifts. This leads to injuries and causes damage to goods and equipment in the factory. Sercombe estimates that 50% of all forklift-related incidents are the result of bad habits, which are costing companies thousands of pounds a year. Better training of other staff who have to work around forklifts would also reduce the likelihood of accidents, he adds.
Sercombe estimates that some firms will have as many as 20 to 30 near misses a month and should use monitoring systems to review the performance of forklift truck operators. It would identify operators who are decelerating too frequently (a sign of poor driving) or if certain areas of the factory are causing more accidents and thus enable changes to be made to the management of the fleet and site layout, he adds.
"Fleet management is a great form of control and eliminates accidents," says Sercombe. "It should be used to improve the factory layout and operations."
Transmon Engineering's iTEch PAS Pedestrian Alert System, for example, can be retrofitted to forklifts and detects the presence of a pedestrian up to seven metres away via a radio frequency identification tag worn by workers. The system emits a visual or vibration alert to the driver should a pedestrian be nearby. Workers can also alert drivers to their presence when they are up to 20m away.
"These systems will lead to continual driver improvement," says Sercombe. "If a driver is being alerted or having their driving altered when they are being careless they will eventually adopt a safer way of driving."
But in an ideal world, however, the safest solution is to separate pedestrians and trucks entirely. The Health and Safety Executive advises that pedestrians should be segregated from vehicle routes by either a physical barrier or clear floor markings.
Any technology that makes life easier for forklift drivers will help to improve efficiency, productivity and safety, but it should not be used as a substitute for good training, says Morris.
Collier, who also provides health and safety advice to the UK Warehousing Association, agrees. "Fleet management systems are nice to have, but they won't take you anywhere that training will not," he says.