Rough-terrain and vertical-mast lift trucks keep lifting and placing various building materials on various jobsites even through the evolution and rise of telehandlers on the market. There are numerous traditional-style forklifts available within the material handling industry which lost market share to telehandlers. This occurred especially when the challenger broke onto the construction scene. Since that time, sales numbers have stabilized. Vertical-mast forklifts have re-emerged and seem to be becoming more popular once more thanks to their greater production, lower cost and modification of some telehandler-like features.
The straight mast lift truck can complete double the job as a telehandler due to their superior handling and maneuverability along with their better ground speed. Interestingly enough, rental outfits are starting to charge higher rates on straight-mast units.
Within the rough-terrain lift truck business, rental buyers have been having a greater influence. More than 50 percent of all vertical-mast lift trucks are now being sold to a rental yard. These acquisitions are generally driven mainly by use, that is a factor closely followed by purchase price.
Within the material handling industry, the telehandler has become the darling new equipment. Its popularity has enhanced its advantage in the rental market as well. Their overall expansion has been moderated by their higher price. There is several forklift users who feel that telehandlers are not practically as helpful compared to conventional rough-terrain lift trucks for loading and unloading repetitive jobs. This means that although competition among telehandler marketers has lowered their prices, many choose the RT lift trucks that have been working well for decades.
In comparison, the telehandler is ganglier, a little slower to operate and requires a higher level of skillfulness to finish the task. On the upside, they get the reach if they need it. There will always be a place in the business for lift trucks however, because there are places which you could not access with a telehandler.
The rough-terrain forklift is compact, small and able to carry a heavier cargo vertically as opposed to the telehandler. Basically, so as to use the best machinery for your application, you would have to determine what tasks exactly you would be completing, the kind of circumstances and setting you would be operating in and what your load capacity is. These factors will help you choose what the right alternatives available are.