For years, perhaps decades, the UK logistics industry was considered a somewhat predictable sector. A bellwether, even, of economic trends and national fortunes. When industries like timber, food, and steel flourish, logistics operations thrive in tandem.
Operations managers and logistics directors could acquire and maintain a fleet of machines, secure in the knowledge that, by and large, in five or so years’ time, they could tweak it, refresh it or simply copy and paste the purchase order.
However, the sector’s confidence was shaken by the unpredictability of Brexit and further undermined by the bewildering effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. The quiet quitting of 50-something engineers and service personnel is still having an impact today. Engineers are in demand, hourly rates have increased, newcomers are thin on the ground, whilst purchase prices are rising and components are harder to source.
Industries flush with success during lockdown invested in their materials handling fleets, then held back as interest rates jumped and the cost-of-living began to bite. Equipment manufacturers were left wondering whether to stick or twist.
Technology also had a hand in the disruption. Electric vehicles are now very much in vogue, the price of diesel being perhaps their best salesperson. Over the past few years, the use of electric sideloaders, particularly those with a capacity of three to eight tonnes, such as those manufactured by Baumann, has increased significantly.
Design simplicity was once valued. A simple truck would be easy to maintain. Yet the shift to battery-operated machines has introduced complexity, with features such as diagnostics, CPUs, motherboards, and inverters. However, maintenance has undoubtedly become easier, with sealed motors, fewer moving parts, and plug-andplay capabilities. The timber industry is now embracing additional features, particularly those focused on improving safety, such as lights, cameras, and driver monitoring and access.
Baumann’s sales director Fabio Bernieri says it is this changing landscape that has influenced the company’s latest design, the EGX X-Plus, featuring its first lithium battery and a radical new safety system. But is it cost or carbon that’s driving the change?
“Undoubtedly it is both,” said Mr Bernieri. “Customers consistently ask about the electric truck performance in relation to the battery duration, with the target to achieve roughly eight to 10 working hours continuously, providing the same performance as a diesel truck.”
The increasing demand for electric trucks then, stems from a desire to achieve the same functionality with less environmental impact and uncertainty regarding future fuel costs.
To achieve the desired performance, most manufacturers of sideloaders and conventional forklifts have increased the battery’s amperage and size. However, this also increases the weight of the battery, leading to reduced efficiency and truck performance.
took a different approach by utilising a 120-volt platform, prioritising truck performance and longevity through higher voltage components. It aimed to match the capabilities of a diesel truck of the same capacity, considering factors such as traveling speed, lifting speed, and mast outreach speed.
What has fascinated the development team at Baumann in recent years is not the acceptance of battery power – that battle seems to be won. It is how that power is delivered – by conventional lead acid means or by new kid on the block, lithium-ion?
Lithium has captivated the market, making its way into all manner of forklifts and manual handling machines and this new Baumann EGX X-Plus does indeed have a lithium battery option. The lighter battery means weight has been removed and redistributed, again extending performance.
Nevertheless, anyone with a good understanding of how sideloaders are used will recognise that lithium is not a great fit for the vast majority of applications. Lithium’s great advantage is opportunity charging, or topping up the battery, but the amount of power required to make a significant impact in a short space of time is beyond most sites. Cost, however, is the big disadvantage.
“At the moment, in the sideloader market, the potential for customers to use the lithium battery for a realistic need is much, much lower than the number who may use the SafeLoad Assistance system,” said Mr Bernieri.
SafeLoad Assistance is this truck’s standout safety feature. When considering safety in a forklift application, it’s usually in relation to the environment of the driver and pedestrians, visibility, cameras, the safety of the cabin, and to the weight being lifted.
However, to discuss these alone, as Mr Bernieri puts it, is not enough, because all these variables are well-known, or should be known, and yet accidents persist.
“All competent operators are aware of the weight of the load or the maximum lift height they can reach,” he said. “Operators also need to respect the balance position of the load in the longitudinal or in the traverse direction. One point which is sometimes difficult to know is the load centre. The load centre can have a considerable impact on safety.”
The load centre of the load itself takes into account the shape and weight of the load, it is the distance from the face of the forks to the load’s centre of gravity. This can, of course, change as the load is tilted or if the load is dynamic – a liquid for instance.
If you are picking up the load using the tip of the forks, the truck’s actual capacity is no longer the same as when the truck’s rated load centre is respected. Occasionally the operator has no choice but to use the tip of the forks to reach a specific position of the load when, for example, it is held on racks, or if it is lying on the opposite side of a lorry that it needs to discharge.
If the load weight is unevenly distributed, perhaps a timber pack unevenly loaded or considerably heavier than expected when wet, the operator has less of a margin for error.
“Sometimes it is not possible to have all the information needed,” said Mr Bernieri. “To not respect the load centre may have a very bad influence on the efficiency of the operation. In the worst case it can disturb the stability of the truck, bringing great risk to the operator.”
Despite developing machines with a certain safety margin for stability, reflected not only in the counterweight and truck capacity, but also the capabilities of chassis, axle, mast and cylinders, it is impossible to account for every scenario when machines are incorrectly operated.
Even a relatively small weight compared to the nominal capacity of the truck, if positioned poorly or if used in a dynamic situation, could bring a risk that cannot be mitigated. Baumann’s SafeLoad Assistance brings an end to the uncertainty.
“It is not only a monitoring system that checks the weight – this exists already,” Mr Bernieri. “SafeLoad Assistance takes into account the load centre in a dynamic situation, provided by the working operation. We’ve been working on this for about seven years, but it has been an ambition for much longer. In that time we have seen load capacities increase and changes in technology and the way we design equipment that allowed us to develop the idea.”
The system factors in forces exerted by the load weight, the position of the load and the truck, and other variables to determine potential risks. Baumann’s goal is not to replace the operator’s judgement but to encourage best practices and reduce maintenance and avoidable damage costs. While some believe that adhering to safety signals may reduce efficiency, as certain risky practices may be faster, Baumann acknowledges that it is ultimately up to the customer to decide.
“Components that are used as designed are more durable, so downtime and maintenance costs are reduced,” added Mr Bernieri. “But the operator remains a vital component of the process and suggesting they can ignore safety signals or switch off their own judgement is something we have to be wary of.”
Baumann has a history of introducing innovative features, such as the VRS (Variable Reach System) outreach system, which utilises the Archimedes screw principle. This system revolutionised mast movement by distributing forces differently, reducing wear on the truck, and providing more accurate control. The enhanced version of VRS is now a standard feature on the EGX X-Plus.
“VRS is revolutionary because it completely changes the way the mast moves in and out,” said Mr Bernieri. “The distribution of the forces are different. The wear on the truck is less intensive and the control is more accurate. The idea of SafeLoad Assistance is also a revolution, but it will be more functional. And legislation may one day make it compulsory; we will see.”
