Vertical-mast and rough-terrain lift trucks keep picking up and positioning various building supplies on various jobsites even through the evolution and rise of telehandlers on the market. There are many traditional-style lift trucks offered within the material handling industry that lost market share to telehandlers. This happened particularly when the competition broke onto the construction scene. Since that time, sales numbers have stabilized. Vertical-mast lift trucks have re-emerged and seem to be becoming more popular once more due to their greater productivity, lower cost and modification of certain telehandler-like features.
Straight-mast machinery will finish twice the job that a telehandler would do because of their maneuverability and ground speed. Fascinatingly enough, rental companies are beginning to charge higher rates on straight-mast models.
Rental purchasers are having significant influence within the rough-terrain forklift business. More than 50 percent of all vertical-mast lift trucks are presently being sold to a rental yard. These purchases are generally driven mostly by use, that is a factor closely followed by acquisition price.
In the material handling business, the telehandler has become the darling new equipment. Its popularity has enhanced its benefit in the rental market too. Their overall expansion has been moderated by their higher price. There is some lift truck users who feel that telehandlers are not nearly as useful compared to conventional rough-terrain lift trucks for unloading and loading repetitive jobs. This means that even though competition among telehandler marketers has lowered their prices, many prefer the RT lift trucks that have been performing well for decades.
In comparison, the telehandler is ganglier, a little slower to operate and requires a higher level of skillfulness to complete the job. On the upside, they get the reach if they need it. There would continuously be a place in the business for forklifts though, since there are locations that you can not access with a telehandler.
Rough terrain forklifts are generally compact machinery, smaller but more able to lift a heavier load vertically compared to the telehandler. Basically, so as to use the best machine for your application, you should determine what tasks precisely you will be completing, the type of circumstances and environment you would be operating in and what your load capacity is. All these factors will help you decide what the right options available are.