You’ve crunched all the numbers every which way and made your decision to purchase a fork lift. Have you considered some of the hidden costs?
We can help.
The fact is a new forklift has a remarkably low cost of ownership- but there are situations that could end up costing you in the long run, and at the top of that list is abuse.
You have all the financial interest in the lift you have purchased, but your operators and your employees may not share the same attachment. They may not treat the machine with the same amount of respect you would.
If that mistreatment of your forklift results in down time, that has a cost associated to it and we don’t have to tell you that’s not good.
Keep the cost of abuse down by making sure your employees understand how to operate and work around the forklift. Make sure they use it responsibly. Forklift abuse can not only be costly, it can be dangerous. Hold employees who abuse the forklift accountable.
As for other costs, and we talk about this a lot- regular maintenance is critical to the efficient operation of your unit. Most forklift owners pay attention to oil and filter changes but there are other systems that require regular maintenance like transmission fluid and filters, cooling systems, hydraulic fluid and brakes. Keep up with all those systems as recommended by the manufacturer. We can help you do that, of course
Generally speaking, regular maintenance like the type we talked about above can be managed for about $150 parts and labor. In addition to keeping your forklift in tip-top shape it also keeps any warranties valid. Ignoring normal, regularly scheduled maintenance could void your warranty.
Contact us with any questions you may have about hidden costs. You don’t want any surprises.