Efficiency Paying off for Linde

Lpg powered forklifts continue to be a popular fuel choice for their high productivity and fuel efficiency. Linde Material Handling recently undertook tests comparing efficiency and productivity against its competitors.
The engines used in Linde trucks are selected for their high fuel efficiency and low emissions, says the company. Automotive engines today are developed with the latest international fuel consumption and emissions levels in mind. This feeds back into the industrial versions that Linde purchases.

The Linde hydrostatic transmission is designed to make more efficient use of engine power and allows an average fork truck work cycle to be completed at lower engine speeds. Direct-drive hydrostatic wheel motors eliminate power losses from reduction gears at the wheels and, because the transmission does not require a differential, further engine power is conserved.

Linde’s automatic engine speed control provides the exact amount of engine performance for the hydraulic response demanded by the operator. On conventional trucks with torque converter transmissions, operators habitually use maximum engine revs to operate the hydraulic functions – even when raising the forks slowly – wasting fuel and increasing wear and tear.

In developing fork trucks, Linde uses a standardised, typical work cycle consisting of unloading 14 pallets from a lorry, transferring them to a two-high stack, then reloading the pallets onto the trailer from the stack. The time taken and the fuel consumed are recorded. The sequence is repeated until 56 loads have been handled and the whole 56-load sequence is then repeated three times and the results averaged to eliminate variations in operator performance. The results of the lorry work cycle test show that Linde is able to move 23 per cent more pallets per hour than the nearest performing competitor – despite being 29 per cent more fuel efficient.

Pictured Above: Linde recently undertook tests comparing efficiency and productivity against its competitors.

Contact Linde Material Handling (UK) Ltd on 01256 342000
www.linde-mh.co.uk

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