The lift truck industry is growing not only in volume, but in sophistication. Societal expectations for friendly interfaces, predictable performance, increased productivity, IoT connectivity and environmental safety are raising the bar on lift truck design. Forklift engineering and design teams are confronting a number of challenges that are rapidly transforming major industrial markets worldwide:

First and foremost, operational safety continues to be a principal focus, driving changes in ergonomics and machine design.

The need to control operational costs while addressing safety concerns has resulted in the rapid adoption of autonomous vehicles.

Burgeoning global trade is expanding the need to move freight as cost-efficiently as possible.

Emerging IoT applications are creating the expectation of user-friendly telematics and big data analytics to improve productivity.

The rapid growth of e-commerce businesses and an increase in governmental infrastructure investments are significant contributors to market growth.

Environmental mandates are encouraging manufacturers of larger forklifts to adopt electric machines to limit potentially hazardous emissions.

In markets such as port machinery, heightened environmental concerns are also driving a move toward alternative fuel technologies.

Partnering with the right forklift component supplier can help lift truck engineering and design teams take advantage of these trends by providing innovative design concepts that can be customized to meet the characteristic profiles associated with each OEM’s brand.

Component Innovations

Parker’s forklift products and technologies provide next generation solutions, for example:

Hose Design – An OEM’s initial investment in high-performance hosing is likely to significantly improve dealer, and ultimately customer, satisfaction. A Parker hose using the highest quality of materials and manufactured to withstand the toughest of applications can best fulfill exacting performance requirements.

Display Modules – Parker’s compact, easy-to-read, full-color touch screen displays, with graphical programming capabilities, support multiple languages and enable rapid application and customized menu screen development. The electronic displays are compatible with both CAN and USB communication protocols. Advanced systems can even feature NTSC.PAL video support to help keep your customers’ fleets moving when problems occur.

Gear Pumps – Silent fixed-displacement gear pumps for applications demanding noise levels less than 65cb, where high power density is required

ORFS – Seal-Lok’s Trap-Seal™ technology was created to proactively protect against O-ring fallout and pinch. The trapezoidal-shaped seal sits snugly in Seal-Lok’s ORFS captive O-ring groove (CORG) ensuring improved retention and providing maximum assurance for leak-free connections.

Parker would welcome an opportunity to become your engineering and technology partner – optimizing and scaling individual components to meet your specification requirements and ensuring predictable and consistent component performance worldwide.