Stand-on solutions

The NDC operates 24h shifts, five days a week, to supply its 62 branches and the Combilifts work round the clock to move about 56t of metal, stainless steel, galvanised steel and plastic tubes, rod and rail on a daily basis. 

An EST was initially trialled towards the end of 2012 when the contract for BSS Industrial’s previous truck fleet came to an end and orders for three more soon followed. The machines are on contract hire from materials handling solution provider Rushlift, whose mobile engineers carry out the maintenance and service on all Combilift equipment within BSS Industrial. 

The ST range has a very narrow cab, with stand-on or seated options, and  its ability to operate in very narrow aisles makes it suitable for steel and pipe stockholding facilities. The 4t capacity trucks handle bundles weighing from 500kg to 2t in aisle widths of 1.8m. They are fitted with guide rollers for guided aisle operation which enables faster travel down the aisles and reduces the risk of product damage. Together with a lift height of 9.5m to access the 13 storage levels, maximum use of all available space has been achieved to accommodate the 2353 picking locations.   

According to NDC Manager David Dempsey the trucks are perfect for the job, with the design of the cab making it easy for operators to enter and exit when necessary.  An in-cab camera monitor ensures a good view of the load when accessing the high top beam, and hydraulic fork positioners allow quick and easy adjustment of the fork width to accord to the varying product sizes.