Doing more with less space has become more important than ever in the warehousing industry. While manufacturing and distribution centers are on the rise in the United States, companies are uncovering new challenges when it comes to their narrow aisle warehouse spaces. There is a need to fit increasing volumes of products into the same warehouse buildings. How are we supposed to do this? Packing all of your product into smaller spaces usually calls for Narrow Aisles (NA) or Very Narrow Aisles (VNA) solutions.
General Aisle Widths
A typical aisle measures 10 ½ feet or more. While narrow aisles range anywhere from 8 ½ to 10 ½ feet, very narrow aisles may be only as wide as 5 to 7 feet. This is why NAs and VNAs can be a challenge when putting product away or stacking orders. Normally, counterbalance forklifts do not fit in these types of spaces, and even if they did, they would not have a tight enough turn radius to avoid hitting the racking. Below are some of the options you can look at to help you solve you narrow aisle problems.
3 Wheel Electric Forklift
The 3 Wheel Electric Forklift is great for narrow aisles. It leads the industry in run time, travel speed, and lift/lowering speeds. Having just one wheel in back allows for a tighter turn radius meaning it doesn’t need as much room as a four-wheel forklift to turn. The 3 Wheel Electric is also available in a “short” model, making it an even better fit for those compact areas. But just because it is smaller doesn’t mean it isn’t powerful. This forklift can lift up to 4,000 lbs.!
Order Picker
Toyota’s Order Picker is manufactured for specific applications. Order pickers are used to help employees reach goods stored on high racking, but does not necessarily stack products. There is a platform where an operator stands to pick things off of the shelves and place them on the pallet in front of them (that also raises and lowers with the operator). Toyota’s Lift Logic technology continuously monitors speed and lift height, allowing for optimized travel speed. This helps operators increase productivity. Order pickers also allow for very narrow aisles, because they do not need to turn for an operator to put things away. They just reach from side to side, making things accessible for your operator.
Electric Reach Truck
The last piece of equipment we are going to touch on is the Electric Reach Truck. This forklift allows you to put pallets behind each other, by “reaching” out. It comes in a single- or double-reach model, helping you utilize your space more efficiently. The other benefit to using this machine is its ability to lift up to almost 30 feet! And its lift capacity of 4,500 lbs., is ready to take on heavy loads.
These are just a few of the options that Toyota Forklifts offers for those tricky narrow aisles. Take a look at the infographic below to get an idea of the complete range of narrow-aisle equipment available to you. Remember, if you need help deciding on what product is right for you, contact your local Toyota Dealer, and they will gladly assist you.
Whether you are in need of material handling solutions for your narrow-aisle warehouse, or looking for other industrial equipment options, call our sales team at 800.435.2449 to discuss what type of forklift is best for your application.
Williams Toyota Lift is an award-winning forklift dealership that serves Canton, Akron, Kent, Ravenna, Medina, Uniontown, Dover, New Philadelphia, and other areas in northeastern Ohio. We sell, service, lease, and rent new and used lift trucks, pallet jacks, scissor lifts, and vertical mast lifts. We stock more than 100,000 parts and tires for forklifts and other material handling equipment. And, we offer financing, training, forklift maintenance plans, and warehousing solutions.
Year after year, Williams Toyota Lift is recognized by Toyota Material Handling USA for our unsurpassed dedication to providing our customers with the highest quality service.
With a large inventory of forklifts and utility vehicles, we are able to serve our customers throughout 12 Ohio counties, including: Stark, Summit, Portage, Medina, Columbiana, Holmes, Wayne, Tuscarawas, Coshocton, Carroll, Jefferson, and Harrison.
Call us today at 800.435.2449.
Article Written By: Lucas Collom, Toyota Forklift Blog
https://www.toyotaforklift.com/blog/do-more-with-less-narrow-aisle-forklifts?fbclid=IwAR2CKp6-Va14xHRY_TqBDQ7bjyozaFCEc3xoAlPiLTOvJCcEMbNEm8DRH-c
