All wrapped up

Whether or not you believe that forklift trucks are a commodity purchase – cue sharp intake of breath from the truck manufacturers – there are a host of added value services that are now available to whet buyers' appetites, wrapped up as part of the package or chargeable extras. Reflecting the way that the manufacturing sector as a whole is embracing services – servitisation is the term coined – the forklift truck manufacturers and dealers have developed added value offers in a bid to win deals in what has become a fiercely competitive market. Most forklift trucks are taken on contract hire in the UK and the hire period typically used to span three to five years, though the recent turbulent economic conditions have meant this has been stretched to seven years in some cases. So, buyers may be looking at this market for the first time in several years. First up is the site survey: "Anyone who is not offered a site survey should be very concerned," cautions David Ellison, chief executive of the Fork Lift Truck Association. The FLTA represents truck dealers and distributors, manufacturers, training companies and suppliers of related equipment. It also stages an annual safety conference for users of forklift trucks and this year's event (on 21 September) looks at driver training. "The survey is fundamental to everything the supplier does," he adds. "The representative should look at the site and the tasks to be performed, along with many other factors such as the environment, the road surfaces, aisle widths, any areas where pedestrians and trucks may interface, indoor and outdoor operations, height restrictions, ventilation if diesel models are being specified... there are a myriad of things to consider before deciding on which truck, capacity, mast and fuel is most suitable for the task." The incumbent supplier will be familiar with the customer's site and operational needs, so may be able to discuss price and specification without an in-depth survey — although during a normal five-year hire period, there could be major changes to the facility and the way it works, so a survey would still be advisable, says Ellison. Even if you manage a small-scale site and you want to buy three used forklift trucks, Ellison says the survey should still be offered. "No one should be willing to sell you a forklift truck without first seeing how and where it will operate." While all suppliers should offer the site survey, there are some that can go beyond this to share their expertise in terms of factory or warehouse layout and possible process alterations. The major manufacturers such as Toyota, Jungheinrich and Linde certainly all have this capability, along with some larger dealers. Their advice may even result in fewer trucks than first anticipated, but the reputable businesses are keen to enable efficiency improvements with the right type and number of trucks, not truck orders alone. While service and maintenance packages are widely offered – and may be included in the price – Ellison sounds a note of caution regarding repair costs. "One thing customers often forget with contract hire is that it's really important to keep on top of day to day repairs, over and above the standard servicing," he urges. "The service contract will cover things that are needed to keep the vehicle running, but minor cosmetic damage is part of everyday life. The temptation may be to leave the dents or broken mirrors, but people change within the business and before you know it you are at end of contract with a £3,000 bill for extra damage and the customer is up in arms blaming the supplier. Make sure minor damage is attended to throughout the course of the contract." Away from maintenance, one area of service that has developed much in recent years is fleet management reporting. Once the domain of sizeable fleets, technology advances – notably web enablement – see this capability now being offered to customers with just a handful of forklifts. "Fleet management really has moved on very much in the last few years," confirms Ellison. "Some suppliers can offer the service to users with relatively small fleets and can monitor trucks from their own location, using wireless connections from the trucks to provide data on the equipment or on driver behaviour, for example. "The benefits of scale for the supplier with web technology mean the costs have come down and this service can be justified for much smaller customers." It's certainly worth investigating these services, he says: some suppliers will be able to offer the full range of reporting, including for complex multi-site operations (Toyota's I_Site and Jungheinrich's ISM Online, for example), while others may provide more simple 'plug and play' technology, such as Transmon and Davis Derby. "Fleet management is the one add-on that users should consider very seriously," Ellison advises. "If your operation is straightforward, then you won't necessarily need sophisticated technology built into the truck. But there are systems that can benefit very low intensity operations and can even be retro-fitted." Package deals When office equipment manufacturer Ricoh wanted to change the forklift fleet at its Telford and Wellingborough sites, it decided that a change of supplier could be beneficial. "Over time, our business needs had changed," says Andy Cowell, assistant supply chain manager. "Ricoh has a strong culture of kaizen and it was clear the time was right to make improvements." Evaluation led the team to Toyota Material Handling which, says Cowell, offered the advantage of being a global business with a local presence. Another factor was the ability to secure a diverse range of equipment – from hand pallet trucks to tow tractors – from a single supplier. This would give Ricoh the ability to alter the mix of its fleet in future, as needs changed. But equally important was Toyota's ability to analyse Ricoh's operation to ensure the recommended fleet would fit perfectly with its needs and would boost site efficiency. It recommended a new engineering arrangement and offered to take on servicing of other brands of equipment which did not need to be replaced immediately. "One of the biggest changes for us has been moving away from having an onsite engineer," says Cowell. "We now have a dedicated Toyota engineer who visits our site each morning to address any issues we may have logged and carried out scheduled maintenance. We then have access to Toyota's fleet engineers for the rest of the day, with a guaranteed two-hour call out." The new system is working well, he adds, allowing Ricoh to pay for engineering time it uses rather than a full-time resource. Elsewhere, Linde Material Handling has worked with Toolstation on the design of its warehouse in Redditch. Toolstations's operations director Adam Keates says: "The Linde team was involved from the outset with the planning and organisation of our materials handling. One year on, the mix of trucks works perfectly, managing the extensive throughput and the fleet is performing to a very high standard." Local dealership Linde Creighton began working with Toolstation three years ago to explore the requirements for its new distribution centre. The truck supplier used Stratos, its warehouse simulation programme, to help Toolstation design the most effective layout and the best mix of trucks to optimise productivity, performance and operating costs. One of the extras offered by Briggs Equipment, Yale's UK distributor, is its Speedshield system, essentially a tool to promote safety and good driving practice among drivers. Since installing Speedshield, recycling and waste management firm Viridor has reduced damage and reckons £220,000 will be saved over the course of five years. Within the first three months of operation, Viridor says its damage costs went down by 75% at the Skelmersdale facility, where it uses six diesel-powered forklift trucks supplied by Briggs. The trucks operate in arduous conditions, moving six tonnes of waste an hour from more than a dozen lorries a day that arrive each day from all over the UK. It's no surprise that some damage occurs to the forklifts in such an environment, but Viridor wanted to ensure the frequency and cost of these incidents was as low as possible. Ian Bowyer, Viridor's training manager, explains: "Prior to installing Speedshield we were seeing around £15,000 worth of damage to trucks and other property on the site every quarter and we realised that this was primarily down to us not being able to properly monitor the behaviour of our drivers and our trucks. "In some instances the damage was caused by drivers speeding, and costs were further increased because incidents and damage to trucks were not being reported promptly." Viridor already had a truck monitoring system, but it was old technology and unsophisticated. Bowyer says it was time consuming to operate, since readings had to be taken manually from each vehicle and downloaded to a computer. So he asked Briggs, the site's longstanding materials handling equipment supplier, for a solution. A two-month trial of Speedshield took place on one truck and was a success – so much so that the system was installed on the remaining five trucks at the end of last year. The system enforces a tailored health and safety checklist on start-up. It also provides real-time information on each truck's performance as well as a range of safety features including automatic cut-out in an accident or other emergency. This is also activated if the truck's engine is left idling, helping to reduce fuel costs. The system can be tailored: for Viridor, this includes enforcing a 5mph speed limit. Clients can also access system information and controls via a web-based application, eliminating the need to buy additional software licences. Ashley Houghton, Viridor's head of procurement at the Skelmersdale facility, confirms the savings as 73% reduction in damage costs within the first three months, "from around £15,000 every quarter to around £4,000". Over five years, this could amount to a saving of £220,000, he adds. A bonus has been the reduction in fuel consumption of the six machines, says Houghton: "Before Speedshield was introduced, the trucks consumed around 6,000 litres a month. This has now fallen to 4,000 to 5,000 litres a month. As fuel has risen sharply in price in recent times, this represents a massive saving," he says. "The system has revolutionised the way we operate and our forklift drivers now feel a lot more accountable for the equipment they use. Credit must go to Briggs for providing us with an innovative, flexible solution that is backed up with 24-hour support and advice." Not surprisingly, Viridor is looking at installing the system on trucks at its other facilities. truck service offer Barloworld, UK distributor for Hyster, is offering a service package for businesses that own new or used forklift trucks. The package, called Truckserve, has been designed to meet everyday operational needs and legislative requirements, and is available for any forklift truck type or model. There are two levels of service to suit different needs and budgets. Truckserve and Truckserve Plus both offer a scheduled programme of maintenance to minimise unforeseen repairs and downtime. The standard Truckserve programme is designed for forklift trucks that are used less frequently, or for less intensive operations. It comprises a tailored service plan, annual brake inspection, truck condition report, tyre survey and 24-hour breakdown cover, which includes same day response. Truckserve Plus is designed to cater for more intensive operations where the lift trucks are critical to business activity. On top of the standard offer, Truckserve Plus includes a maximum four-hour service response, annual Thorough Examinations to ensure compliance with LOLER regulations, a battery topping up service and annual anti freeze replacement. A planned equipment performance review is also included, along with driver training assessments. Customers of the extended package also receive discounts on short-term hire equipment. creative solutions Jungheinrich UK's Craig Johnson told journalists at an event recently that the truck manufacturer is focused on growth in what has become a diversified market. Competitors catch up with your technology eventually, he said, and the customer continually expects more. "It's no longer about just supplying a truck; it's about supplying a solution," he said. Unlike some other truck manufacturers and suppliers, Jungheinrich has the benefit of having a direct sales operation in the UK. The company's new branding message is 'machines, ideas, solutions' – a message, said Johnson, that underpinned its strong engineering background combined with creativity and innovation, wrapped up in a service offer with technical expertise. The company acquired warehouse management system specialist ISA GmbH at the end of 2009 to boost its capability in this area. By combining the two businesses, Jungheinrich says it now has a much stronger offer to design storage facilities for customers.