1. Make sure trucks are maintained in line with the maintenance schedule. Badly serviced machines will use more fuel.
2. When operating a forklift truck don’t rev the engine and accelerate unnecessarily. This is a major contributor to excessive fuel usage.
3. When operating a forklift truck, coasting towards a load or stacking destination is more fuel efficient than driving quickly and stopping abruptly.
4. If you have to stop during a handling operation, switch off – don’t idle. A lot of fuel is wasted when operators leave the engine running, particularly when working off the truck or waiting for the
next load.
5. Make sure operators are well trained. A well-trained operator will drive in a more economical manner than an untrained one.
6. Operator training can help even experienced drivers to operate in the most productive and fuel efficient manner.
7. LPG bottles – A substantial amount of all gas purchased in bottles is returned to the supplier. You can save money by making sure that operators fully empty the bottle before they change it.
8. LPG – if you use more than around eight LPG bottles per week it may be worth considering a bulk tank facility. This could save up to ten per cent on your annual LPG bill.
9. LPG – When purchasing gas in either bulk or bottles, use a quality supplier – poor quality LPG can cause costly breakdowns and poor fuel economy.
10. Diesel – Diesel forklift trucks that are not used on the road can be run on red diesel. Red diesel is around 60 per cent cheaper than white diesel.
Source: Toyota Materials Handling
