Industrial Trailers on Forklifts for the Win
The automation Eichinger brings to the table can’t be ignored. In our Crane Trash Bins, we keep people out of the dumpsters when everyone else encourages entry into the hazardous place. We developed a telehandler tipping bin when everyone else just has people get off of a forklift three times per trash cycle. So of course it’s Eichinger who is again streamlining things. This time it’s in the movement of materials and tools in larger settings with a forklift trailer. Let’s go take a look at what this looks like.
12’ long Industrial Trailer moving frames in stillage bins
Large projects have the challenge of moving tools, materials and goods from an intake and organization location to the work setting. This true in construction and it’s true in factories. Often overnight or first thing in the morning items are moved out and put in place so the work can be done efficiently. Delays are costly. so let’s make sure that doesn’t happen. We can learn about how this is done efficiently in shipping. We don’t have a UPS truck show up with a truck and a second truck with a driver that hops out to deal with the carrying the package. It’s one truck hauling the packages with one driver/delivery person. So why not have the same thing on large construction or manufacturing sites?
Our Industrial Trailer lets a job load up the goods on the trailer when it’s convenient. Then the delivery happens before the next stage of work. The driver takes the forklift that is pulling the trailer as well. The driver sets the trailer down. When it touches the ground posts touch on the front and it’s essentially locked in place. The latches for the tines drop down and the forklift can remove the tines. Then the driver can use the forklift to lift the items off quickly and get them exactly where they should be. It’s not a tug/tractor taking the trailer and a forklift following so two pieces of equipment and two paychecks are getting the work done. It’s one item doing both jobs with some simple automation, just because Eichinger is clever.
Closer view of the way the tine locks work.
Moving and delivering 11,000 lbs or 20’ of items in a couple of minutes while at the delivery spot are pretty great results. The driver can also pick up any empty bins along the way to go back to where the trailers are being loaded. This is the beauty of just setting down the trailer and being able to drive away. No chocks, no getting out of the set to make it happen. Set it down and simply move to that next task. If you are doing Turnarounds, stocking a factory, at a port, in a ship yard, or a Mechanical Contractor in construction, how can you compete with this ability? It just has to be come “The Way” it’s done once you’ve seen this method.
