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Telehandlers — 8,000-pound capacity, 40-foot lift height and over

June 12, 2007 |

Specialization rules in the construction equipment world – and the telehandler is the machine of choice for contractors engaged in intensive material-handling and pick-and-place applications. Masonry, steel erection and framing contractors are among the top users of telehandlers with 8,000 pounds capacity and 40 feet of lift height or more. Sometimes called rough-terrain forklifts due to their basic machine profile – four equal-size tires, four-wheel drive and a long, narrow extending boom – telehandlers excel at material-handling. But as hydraulic systems matured, new possibilities opened up and they now tackle a wider variety of jobs.

It’s important to note telehandlers will never be high-production machines in many of these roles. Take bucket work, for example. The boom that makes these machines so effective at high-reach, pick-and-place jobs is a detriment in aggressive bucket work. The boom is sensitive to lateral shock loads, which can bend and weaken it over time. The nature of this boom design also gives it decreased breakout forces since it was originally designed for a very different kind of work.

As Dave White, product marketing manager, Ingersoll-Rand, notes, in limited bucket applications – cleanup work, for example – a telehandler can easily be a productive alternative to using a small wheel loader or backhoe. And as long as the operator enters the pile correctly, avoids being overly aggressive and keeps the boom retracted when rooting and extracting material from the pile, then a whole new dimension of productivity can be added to the telehandler without compromising its original strengths. “It’s absolutely true that a telescopic handler is not going to be the best digging machine on your jobsite,” says White. “Coach your operators to remember the telehandler’s boom is not designed to be ground engaging – especially on a multi-stage boom.

The same concept holds true for the use of other attachments. Many contractors no longer feel the need to add backhoes or skid-steer loaders to their fleets to run attachments, understanding their telehandlers can now handle augers, sweepers and even small hammers and breakers when they’re not lifting heavy payloads.

Hedge your bets
Your first call when looking at a telehandler should be the maximum height you think you’ll ever need to lift to, says John Koepf, product manager, Gehl. “You probably should add a little bit to it,” he adds, “because sooner or later you’re going to be on a jobsite where the terrain is uneven or you’ve got part of a building that’s on a slope. Either way, it always seems contractors need just a little bit more height and reach to get their jobs done.”

“The types of material and how they’re packaged has gotten heavier in recent years,” notes Ky Kuehling, vice president, telehandler products, JLG Industries (manufacturer of Lull, JLG, Gradall and Skytrak machines). “Another mitigating circumstance is jobsites have grown more congested. With multiple contractors working on sites at the same time it’s not uncommon for telehandlers to encounter ditches and other obstacles in the areas they need to approach to raise up and deliver supplies.”

These factors, Kuehling says, have fueled the transition from mainstay machines with 36-foot lift heights and 6,000-pound capacities to models with minimum 40-foot reach heights and payload capacities from 8,000 to 10,000 pounds. Contractors also want machines with more reach for delivering supplies horizontally on a jobsite as well as vertically. “A telehandler can reach out over a freshly poured slab and across ditches or flooded areas to deliver payloads to crews working on the ground,” Kuhling notes. “This makes an even stronger case for making reach your primary consideration when spec’ing a machine.”

Once you’ve determined your optimal reach height, though, bear in mind that capacity is not a constant. Machines in the class covered in this article, for example, are rated at 8,000 pounds. That’s the amount of material they can lift at ground level. But that rated capacity falls off exponentially as the operator starts to raise the boom into the air.