What’s The Life Expectancy Of A Forklift In Indiana?

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When was the last time your Indiana company purchased a new forklift? If it’s been a while, you may wonder if any of your equipment is past its prime.  The last thing you need is to find yourself scrambling for a backup forklift someday when your current one suddenly fails. 

To keep operations running smoothly, you need to know the life expectancy of a forklift in Indiana. That way, you can plan for the day when that aging forklift goes into retirement. Here is what you need to know about how long your trucks should last for your business and how you can extend a forklift’s working life. 

What’s the Life Expectancy of a Forklift?

When estimating the life expectancy of a forklift in Indiana, you should know that most forklift lifespans are determined by work hours rather than months or years. This is because forklifts don’t age due to time but rather from wear and tear. A forklift that operates every day will age faster than one that sits in storage for months at a time. 

Many factors including, but not limited to, load stress, planned maintenance, and environmental conditions, can shorten or extend the life expectancy of a forklift. It all depends on how you use it.

What Factors Can Affect a Forklift’s Lifespan?

It’s a simple rule that the harder a forklift works, the shorter its lifespan. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use your forklift when you need it, or that it will not last you upwards of tens of thousands of hours. Factors that can negatively impact a forklift’s lifespan include, but are not limited to, the following: 

  • How often it is used. Wear and tear take their toll on forklifts. If you use a forklift every day, you should expect to replace it sooner than you would a forklift that’s used only for occasional projects. 
  • Work conditions. Forklifts that work in extreme temperatures or on rugged terrain suffer more damage and break down sooner than forklifts used inside or in more moderate conditions. 
  • Operator competence. Your forklift operators can shorten a forklift’s lifespan if they aren’t careful. Without proper training and care, it is easy for an operator to overwork and damage a forklift. 

How to Extend Your Forklift’s Lifespan

Just because you work your forklift hard doesn’t mean you’ll be buying a new one soon. Just as some things shorten a forklift’s life expectancy, other factors can extend it. 

Planned maintenance does a lot to preserve your forklift’s life. When you pre-schedule checks and repairs, you can keep your forklift in good working order for longer and prevent a premature break-down. When you catch little problems early, they won’t become large, critical problems later. 

You can also lengthen the life expectancy of a forklift by getting the right model for the job. For example, if you anticipate heavy loads and rough conditions for your forklift, a high-capacity or specialty model will last longer than a standard forklift. Or a narrow aisle forklift might navigate inside racks better than a standard forklift, saving you from the bumps or dings that happen in close quarters. 

Has Your Forklift Exceeded Its Life Expectancy?

No forklift lasts forever. If you’re planning on replacing an old forklift soon, Tynan has a variety of long-lasting forklifts from top brands for sale or lease. Contact us at (317) 597-4003 to discuss which vehicle will best meet the needs of your Indiana operation.

Forklift lifespans are determined by work hours rather than months or years.

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