Aisle-Master – the versatile, space saving and tough operator

They also have an enviable track record of long life, robust operation in a wide variety of industry sectors, as the experience of the Commodity Centre Group illustrates.

A dedicated commodity store and logistics specialist based in the UK and Northern Europe and the leading company in its sector, the Commodity Centre handles over 200,000 tonnes of mainly dried foodstuffs from around the world on a yearly basis at its HQ in Chelmsford, which are destined for major supermarkets and repackaging plants.

14 incoming containers are emptied and 500 pallets are handled on a daily basis, with seven Aisle-Masters working for at least twelve hours a day to keep things moving the move in this very fast paced environment. The original fleet of Aisle-Masters was acquired in 2012 and has been deployed for pretty much every task in and around 180,000 square feet of warehousing with 20,000 pallet spaces. Once pallets have been offloaded they are taken from the ground to the racking, lifted into place - the trucks’ 9m lift height coping easily with 1t pallets to the top beam of 7.5m - and picked again when needed to reload for despatch.

"Being on the go flat out during these long shifts coupled with the uneven surfaces and expansion joints that we have in the yard makes this a tough job for handling equipment,” said Director of Operations Dr. Andrew Sage. "The other two articulated brands we used in the past tired very quickly under these harsh conditions - in some instances showing noticeable signs of strain on the steering after just 18 months. The continued longevity of the Aisle-Masters after three years with only very minimal disruption is proving to be very impressive.”

The 20WHE electric powered models were recommended by Gary Millar of Armill Lift Trucks, the Commodity Centre’s long standing materials handling suppliers. "The company wanted to stick with the narrow aisle articulated system which was adopted around 11 years ago to achieve optimum pallet density and faster loading times compared to counterbalance trucks, but were concerned about resilience,” said Gary. "Driver preference also played its part – during a demo of different makes they all opted for the Aisle-Master, citing good solid build, better visibility and a smoother ride as reasons.”

Ease of battery change was a further plus, but the original powerful 930 Ah batteries still offer a good seven or eight hours operation before being replaced with one of the four spares available to ensure constant availability of the entire fleet. Benefits of the incorporated Hoppecke trak air system are long battery life, reduced requirement for top ups and therefore lower maintenance costs.

The contract hire package with Armill is good for both customer and dealer alike according to Gary Millar: "The Commodity Centre has peace of mind that if any issues do crop up we will take care of them, but the Aisle-Masters are very low maintenance. We have had no need to carry out more than minor repair work on them, mainly due to the yard conditions, in an application that is the most relentless I have seen in terms of potential wear and tear on forklifts.”

A new facility to create 5,000 more pallet spaces is planned to be opened in the next nine months or so, and should more trucks be required, Dr. Andrew Sage knows what he wants: "Aisle-Master’s track record means we will not be looking elsewhere for reliable and speedy handling equipment.”