Polypipe takes 17 diesel powered forklifts

Polypipe turned to Impact, the UK’s sole Cat Lift Trucks distributor, to provide a fleet of 17 new 2.5-tonne diesel-powered forklift trucks, one power pallet truck and an industrial sweeper for its Doncaster headquarters. Prior to delivery, Polypipe briefed Impact to re-spray the rear of each forklift one of three different colours – a strategy the customer uses to identify at a glance which department a truck belongs to.

The forklifts have also been specified with a mix of Kooi-Reachforks for double-deep stacking duties and spreader forks for carrying pipes up to six metres in length. Each forklift has also been kitted out with OptaFleet Advanced Fleet Management Systems to monitor truck performance and ensure optimum usage.

Steve Watkin, dispatch manager at Polypipe’s Doncaster site, says: “Impact’s support has been phenomenal. They helped us specify precisely the right trucks and took on board all of the modifications we needed. We trust Impact implicitly with our fleet and have done for as long as I can remember.” 

Impact has supported Polypipe’s materials handling fleet for decades and has even placed one of its engineers permanently onsite to maintain the fleet and spot any potential issues before they cause truck downtime.

“The back-up support provided by Impact is second-to-none. Having an Impact engineer onsite is invaluable; plus the commitment to carrying out proactive maintenance means we are able to get the maximum from each truck.”

The new machines form part of a 60-strong materials handling fleet at the Doncaster site, supplied exclusively by Impact. The forklifts will be double-shifted, working an average of 16-hours per day, seven days a week. Together they will load up to 50 commercial vehicles per day, in addition to packing product cages and general movement duties.

Polypipe was founded in Doncaster in 1980 as a provider of plastic drainage products. Today the company offers more than 20,000 product lines covering the residential, commercial, civil and infrastructure markets with piping solutions. The company operates a fleet of 400 vehicles and has a workforce of almost 3,000 people.

For more information about Impact visit www.impact-handling.com