BYD another ‘beast from the east’?
If you thought lithium based forklifts were just for large fleets – you’re wrong. Paul Brierley of Eastern Forklifts has seen great success selling BYD lithium phosphate battery powered forklifts, largely to SMEs, in East Anglia. HSS editor Simon Duddy talks to Paul.
Eastern Forklifts has sold around 35 BYD forklifts over the last 18 months, a remarkable success story, considering their main focus is Mitsubishi. It has seen end users take the trucks to replace lead-acid, LPG and diesel powered models. Paul Brierley, managing director of Eastern Forklifts, says there are a number of reasons behind the sales surge, with relatively low cost for such an advanced battery technology a key factor.
“The cost is similar to buying a premium brand lead-acid truck, with an extra battery.
“So, if you need two batteries because your day is so long, the BYD is a great solution, we would argue.”
To get the best of of the BYD trucks, it is necessary to opportunity charge.
“BYD have a brilliant usage calculator tool, simply input working hours, break times, duration of breaks etc, and it will calculate the power you need, and when to opportunity charge.
“Even if people say they work non-stop, forklift drivers – even in a busy 8 hour shift – don’t work non-stop. The truck doesn’t need long – one hour in eight is sufficient to recharge.”
Paul says users have switched from gas-powered trucks in order to reduce costs.
“Lots of customers have traditionally used gas trucks, because they start early in the morning, work throughout the day and have a busy period in the evening. So, you need it for two busy periods in the day. It doesn’t suit an electric truck because you’d need two batteries and to change the battery midday.
“This comes with all the attendant space, and battery changing issues, which turns off some customers. For those who would not have considered electric before, they can now see how it could work.”
One example is Bartrums Transport, who are very busy in the morning, when lorries go out, with things hotting up again in the evening when the lorries come back. The BYD can be charged over lunch when the solar roof panels are generating so they don’t have the fear of the truck going flat, or have to worry about spare batteries and changing facilities, says Paul.
“The primary motivations for Bartrums were environmental but cost savings were also a significant factor. Once you add in the cost of the LPG the BYD is significantly cheaper than running gas machines.”
The maintenance-free nature of the battery is a selling point against users with lead-acid forklifts, says Paul. BYD offers an eight year warranty on the battery, guaranteeing 65% of battery performance after eight years.
“With lead-acid batteries, if it isn’t managed well, performance can degrade over time. And people often don’t manage lead-acid batteries well in this country.
“Many customers using lead-acid trucks have had a dispute with their supplier over battery warranty.
“Customers will often get hit with a bill for a replacement battery, and this can sting, it’s not in the budget. This creates tension between the supplier, the customer, and the battery firm.
“One of the great things about BYD is you buy the truck, battery and charger from the same manufacturer. The battery is maintenance-free but in the customer’s mind, its clear who to go to if there is a problem.”
Paul predicts the battery could still have 80% of its capacity after 5-6 years and that, as the forklift takes an hour to charge, this shouldn’t have huge operational repercussions.
Engineering firm RGE Group also invested in BYD forklifts from Eastern, buying six forklifts and two pallet movers.
“At one site they were using forklifts with 2 batteries and an outdoor charging area, but they were short on space, and suffered from poor battery management and maintenance. Switching to BYD removed this headache and allowed them to save space. In addition, some of those trucks are working 60/70 hours a week with no battery issues,” says Paul.
Lithium-based solutions won’t be for every application by any means, but the progress Eastern has made in East Anglia shows there are swathes of the market ready to take the plunge.
