UK – GERMANY – Narrow Aisle Flexi, the company which produces the range of articulated fork lifts which get round the problem of ultra-thin racking corridors by ‘bending’ in the middle to access freight, recently won a contract to supply Flexi HiLOAD articulated trucks to the Germany-based production facility of leading automotive components supplier Magna Decoma. The company which supplies parts for use in Mercedes A and B Class vehicles as well as the Daimler range of heavy goods vehicles, is using the trucks in its supply chain activities to deliver components from two different on-site storage warehouses directly to its production line.

The Flexi trucks are being used to offload stillages of incoming component parts from curtain sided trailers that arrive at the facility from Magna’s suppliers. To maximise productivity it is necessary to handle two stillages simultaneously so the new 2.5 tonne Flexis have been supplied with hydraulic telescopic forks to allow unloading from one side of the delivery vehicles.

Introduced at the IMHX Show in 2010, the Flexi HiLOAD is designed to handle heavy loads in very narrow aisle storage schemes. Since its launch the truck has proved extremely popular with companies operating in the manufacturing, building materials, engineering and food ingredients sectors. The models in operation at Magna Decoma have chassis only 1350mm wide and can lift loads of 2.5 tonnes with lift heights of up to 9.5 metres and the trucks are covering work that previously required both counterbalance and reach trucks. This has led to a significant reduction in forklift fleet operating costs for the company as well as enabling an increase in storage capacity by over 25%.

The Magna Flexi’s are fitted with fully weather proof heated operator cabs that allow year round operation no matter what the weather conditions may bring. This dual-purpose functionality guarantees the user a wide range of benefits, not the least of which is the ability to load and unload lorries and deliver pallets directly into the racking in a single operation. Possible downtime is minimised by the presence of the UK manufacturer’s local German distributor, who not only supplied the trucks, but also provides Magna Decoma with a comprehensive service support package that ensures ‘round the clock’ availability