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 a lot of traditional-style lift trucks offered in the material handling business which lost market share to telehandlers. This happened particularly 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 again due to their greater productivity, modification of some telehandler-like features and low cost.
Straight-mast machines will finish twice the work that a telehandler would do due to their maneuverability and ground speed. Fascinatingly enough, rental outfits are starting to charge higher rates on straight-mast units.
In the rough-terrain lift truck business, rental purchasers have been having a greater influence. Over 50 percent of all vertical-mast lift trucks are now being sold to a rental yard. These acquisitions are normally driven mainly by utilization, which is a factor closely followed by purchase 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 practically as helpful as opposed 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 choose the RT lift trucks which have been performing well for decades.
In comparison, the telehandler is a little slower, ganglier to operate and needs a higher level of skillfulness to complete the task. On the upside, they get the reach if they require it. There will always be a place in the industry for forklifts however, because there are locations which you will not be able to access with a telehandler.
The rough-terrain forklift is small, compact and able to lift a heavier load vertically as opposed to the telehandler. Basically, so as to utilize the best machine for your application, you will have to determine what tasks exactly you would be completing, the type of environment and circumstances you will be operating in and what your load capacity is. These factors would help you decide what the best options available are.