Yale brings the ‘luck of the Irish’ to European Forklift Press

Eight editors from Europe’s leading materials handling press enjoyed a visit to the NMHG Craigavon manufacturing plant recently and were treated to a true Irish experience as their visit, organised by Yale, coincided with St Patrick’s Day.

The visit was designed to showcase Yale’s new VL series of energy efficient and highly productive electric forklift trucks and to demonstrate the state of the art facilities and production methods at the Craigavon facility where Yale’s next generation of electric counterbalance forklift trucks are produced.


Feedback on the new VL series was extremely positive amongst all editors which included the UK’s ShD and Handling & Storage Solutions; Spain’s Logistica Profesional and Handling & Storage; Germany’s STAPLERWORLD; Finland’s LOGISTIIKKA, Poland’s Logistyczny and a freelance journalist from Belgium.

Our group of editors were also briefed on the extensive 90 year history of Yale, from the very first electric lift truck in 1920 and the commencement of manufacturing in the heart of the black country, to the Queen's Award for Export Achievement and the launch of Yale’s search for the oldest Yale truck still in operation today.



The visit was rounded off with a traditional Paddy’s night celebration in the heart of Dublin – we look forward to reading the editors’ reviews.

YALE NETWORK EXPANSION CONTINUES IN GERMANY

Yale has strengthened its presence in the German materials handling market with the new appointment of “Diez Fördertechnik GmbH” in Sonneberg as an Authorised Yale Dealer. Diez Fördertechnik GmbH will be responsible for the sales and servicing of Yale materials handling equipment across the Southern Thuringia and Northern Bavaria/Frankonia areas.

This latest appointment demonstrates Yale’s commitment to strengthening its German distribution network, particularly the partnership between Yale and its existing Dealers. The addition of Diez Fördertechnik GmbH was only possible thanks to neighbouring dealers relinquishing some of their territories to the new dealership.

Werner Diez, Managing Director of Diez Fördertechnik GmbH, said his decision to join the Authorised Yale Dealer network after representing another forklift truck manufacturer for 18 years was due to the growing customer recognition of Yale as an expanding brand in Germany. Yale’s complete range of counterbalance forklift trucks and warehouse products and the comprehensive Yale Dealer support programmes were also key to his company’s commitment to Yale.

"We reviewed the market for some time to find the best fit for our developing business as we were seeking a better complete product offering from a single supplier.

“Yale provides a full-line range of materials handling equipment and a vision for the future, both in terms of product and Dealer support programs.

“We were particularly impressed by the in depth and extremely professional recruitment process of both the NMHG central dealer development team and the local Yale Fördertechnik GmbH regional team. They provided us with quick, well structured and complete business plan and financial model that we discussed at length and convinced us that we were talking to the right partner.

“The fact that the other Yale Dealers actively participated and supported our organisation in our evaluation process was highly appreciated and confirmed that we made the right decision."

Diez Fördertechnik GmbH is an independent Dealer established in 1991 and has been selling and servicing forklift trucks for nearly twenty years.

Werner Meier-Ansari, Regional Manager at Yale Fördertechnik GmbH in Neu-Isenburg commented that he is delighted to welcome Diez Fördertechnik GmbH into the Yale dealer network in Germany.

“We were particularly impressed with their strong local sales and service presence in the area as well as the high technical and commercial qualifications of their employees. The appointment contributes to our strategy of completing our network coverage throughout Germany with professional independent dealerships.

“I am confident that Diez Fördertechnik GmbH will contribute significantly towards our goal of increasing market share in the materials handling market in Germany.”

Yale materials handling equipment is distributed through an Authorised Dealer network of 17 Dealers across Germany. To locate your nearest Yale Dealer and for further details on the full range of Yale forklift trucks and materials handling equipment, visit www.yale-gabelstapler.eu

The search for the oldest Yale truck continues

RECONDITIONED YALE FORKLIFT TRUCK TO DYE FOR

A 27 tonne Yale dye handler built in 1955 and used continually in the automotive industry has been given a new lease of life after being reconditioned by a team of service technicians at Yale Materials Handling UK, a Yale Authorised Dealer for the United Kingdom.

This impressive piece of equipment has now been entered into Yale’s competition to find the oldest piece of Yale lifting equipment that is still in use today in Europe.

ThyssenKrupp Tallent is a major supplier to the automotive industry and uses the dye handler forklift truck to lift dyes into its 1,000 ton presses.

As a purpose built machine ThyssenKrupp identified that it needed to refurbish this unique forklift truck, which is vital to the company’s production process, as the dye handler is a machine that is no longer manufactured.

Expert knowledge, extensive experience
Yale Materials Handling UK in Aldridge, West Midlands, was the only suitable company with the expert knowledge and extensive experience of reconditioning such a wide range of Yale equipment that was able to refurbish the dye handler and return it to ‘as new’ working condition.

Simon Hall, special products engineering department foreman at Yale Materials Handling UK, managed the project in the workshops. He said: “We have seen a considerable number of forklift trucks in our time but none of us had ever worked on a piece of equipment anywhere near as unique and old as the ThyssenKrupp dye handler.

“In refurbishing such a unique forklift truck we were reliant on our own engineering expertise. There were no manuals available to see how to strip down the dye handler, it is was down to the years of experience our technicians have that enabled us to carry out the refurbishment, and we have plenty of that in Aldridge, and of course we really do like a challenge”.

Challenge
Even for a seasoned team of experienced and expert engineers, working on a forklift truck as old as the dye handler was not without its challenges.

As this particular model had not been manufactured for so long, replacement parts were unavailable and so Yale Materials Handling UK had to find a company that could help engineer the special parts needed.

Simon continues: “It is only because we are based in the country’s manufacturing heartland here in the Midlands that we were able to find a company who could re-engineer the parts from scratch. The dye handler needed new gears, splines, shafts, bearings and motors and because we have such a wide network of suppliers we managed to identify one that could provide us with the engineering capability we needed.

“In total it took us three months to totally recondition the dye handler including special parts manufacturing, an overhaul of the steer axel, electrical and hydraulic systems and traction battery. We even gave it a full re-spray,” added Simon.

As a result of the level of refurbishment ThyssenKrupp Talent has subsequently placed an order with Yale Materials Handling UK for their other Yale dye handler to be reconditioned to the same level and to further extend its 55 year working life.

Win a trip to New York – help to find the oldest operating Yale forklift truck

Do you have a piece of Yale equipment that is older that the ThyssenKrupp dye handler? If so, you could be in with a chance of winning a trip to New York. Click here to find out more