The Material Handling Blog

Battery changeover is a necessary pain for most operations that use electric trucks. Changing the battery involves removing the forklift from its ordinary operation and taking it to a purpose-built battery changeover area or a larger battery room. Here, the extremely heavy spent battery must be removed and connected to the charger, and a new battery removed from the charger and connected to the truck.

Special equipment is required to make the battery change possible, like a battery roller that can push the new battery into the compartment while pushing the old one out, or a specially-adapted pallet truck with an attachment designed for handling batteries. On top of all this, lead-acid batteries require regular fluid top-ups, cleaning and maintenance to work effectively and safely, and ventilation systems are essential to stop the build-up of explosive hydrogen gas produced during charging.

With all of these factors to consider, it's unsurprising that Li-ION batteries are becoming a popular energy solution for forklifts.

The traditional lead-acid forklift battery is a tried-and-tested technology. However, Li-ION (lithium ion) batteries, which power your laptop, smartphone and maybe even your car, are now a viable energy solution for forklifts. But what advantages does this new technology offer?

Lithium-ion, or Li-ION batteries are everywhere these days — in your smartphone, in your laptop, possibly even on your bicycle or in your car. However, they're probably not in the forklift trucks your company uses for materials handling.

There’s many reasons why forklift owners are moving towards electric trucks more and more - high fuel prices (which don’t show signs of falling), greater ecological awareness and improved technologies have made electric trucks an obvious choice for many.

A high-quality electric truck can last years, but downtime can occur if the battery is not properly maintained. Optimised battery life is always a good thing, and it’s essential if you want to quickly recover the initial investment you made when procuring the forklift, whether it’s new or used.