New Hyster trucks for whisky bottling plant
1 min read
Whisky maker Chivas Brothers has a new fleet of forklift trucks at its Paisley bottling plant, where up to 13 million cases of whisky are produced each year. The trucks are Hyster models supplied by UK distributor Barloworld, which has worked with Chivas for many years looking after more than 100 pieces of kit across its Scottish sites.
Robert McLean, dry goods manager at the Paisley site, explains: "We have up to 35 lorries to unload each day, which contain palletised cases, empty bottles and labels that must be stored, picked and then fed into the bottling hall. The forklift trucks are an important part of this."
Hyster electric counterbalance trucks are operating in the dry goods warehouse, including new compact Hyster E1.75XMS four wheel trucks with cushion tyres. The trucks operate for a full single daily shift: Barloworld supplies a total battery management service incorporating battery manufacturer Hoppecke's Trak-air technology. The service, says McLean, has cut energy bills and charging time required.
In the finished goods warehouse, 2.5 tonne capacity LPG forklifts are used for loading up to 60 lorries and containers a day, which can increase to over 100 during busy periods. Fitted with either forks or push-pull attachments to handle loads on slip-sheets, the trucks were favoured by Chivas Brothers drivers in pre-order trials. Finished goods manager Gary Gibson says: "The drivers like the comfort, visibility, manoeuvrability and performance of the Hyster trucks. Simple features such as the reverse horn button on the rear handle make a big difference."
