Uplifting Chinese Forklifts Coming To UK

Forklift Manufacturer - Staying With European Tastes Or Do you Fancy A Chinese?

Peter MacLeod of SHD Logistics reports on the move of Chinese Forklift Manufacturer BYD to dominate the UK forklift market - and they have the backing to do it.

I have just returned from a tour of the manufacturing facilities of BYD, the Chinese maker of electric vehicles. It may not be a brand that UK forklift buyers are familiar with, but I am certain it is one that will have come onto the radar of its established rivals.

At the heart of BYD's offering is its Iron Phosphate battery technology, a clean and highly efficient powertrain that allows opportunistic charging of a battery that is designed to last for the life of the vehicle. The running costs versus those of a more conventional electric truck are compelling - up to €2,000 per truck per shift per year.

In an industry where genuine innovation is hard to come by, incremental improvement is normally modest; when BYD arrives on the UK scene later this year it will be offering a whacking step forward. Whilst its far too early to predict the demise of lead-acid battery-powered forklifts, this new technology will certainly catch the attention of those peddling traditional technology.

I have written in the past about the threat from China, but so far it has been largely rebuffed thanks to a perceived 'me too' approach to manufacturing, offering solid, cost-effective trucks but no significant innovation. Suddenly a Warren Buffet-funded player is coming to Europe with a genuine technological advantage. It's time to sit up and take it seriously.

BYD Press Conference

At an exclusive press event held in Shenzhen last week, Chinese fork lift truck manufacturer BYD confirmed its intentions to market its range of Iron-Phosphate powered electric trucks in the UK by the end of this year.

The innovative, vertically integrated manufacturer - part of the €9bn turnover BYD Auto Group, 10% of which is owned by legendary US investor Warren Buffet - already has forklift sales operations in Germany and Benelux, serviced by a European HQ in Rotterdam. At Logimat this year, it spelled out its intentions to broaden its offering to more European countries, choosing France and the UK as its next territories.

A worldwide player in the manufacture of Iron Phosphate batteries, BYD has grown to become one of China's leading electric vehicle manufacturers. Its best-selling electric buses and taxis are already in action across Europe - for example, London has two e-buses on trial and the capital also boasts a fleet of 50 electric taxis - and its ambition to penetrate the European forklift market was revealed last week as it demonstrated its manufacturing capabilities to the cream of Europe's logistics editors.

Visits to its automotive manufacturing plants, where its 75kW E6 model and its Denza electric car (the latter in a JV with Daimler-Benz) are produced, were followed by a visit to its R&D facilities and its new 1m sq m flt manufacturing plant at Shaoguan, where series production of its European-spec machines was just getting underway. The facility will have an ultimate capacity of 50,000 trucks per annum. The trip was rounded off by a look at its hi-tech automated battery production facility in Huizhou, where the real magic behind the BYD forklift offering lies.

The Iron Phosphate battery technology allows opportunistic, rapid and efficient charging using a BYD charger supplied with every machine. BYD guarantees its batteries for eight years or 10,000 hours, and therefore does away with the need to supply a second battery during the forklift's first full contract.

Using a calculation that survived the scrutiny of Europe's leading trade journalists, BYD produced a convincing argument that demonstrated an operational saving of €1,600 - €2,000 per annum per forklift per shift, versus a 'conventional' lead acid battery-powered forklift, a fact that will certainly catch the attention of the cost-aware UK forklift buyers.

Javier Contijoch, Forklift Director Europe for BYD, told SHD Logistics that he is currently on the lookout for UK dealers, and will be hoping to achieve national coverage by the time the brand launches in the UK in Q4/2015. "We will be in the UK looking for dealers who share the same ambition as we do," said Contijoch. "We are serious about the UK market, and are rolling out across European territories starting out with the largest markets, at a rate that enables us to ensure full service to our customers."

To that end, BYD is establishing a parts distribution centre in The Netherlands and plans to keep its most popular models in stock in Europe, offering immediate delivery. With three main models on offer - 2.5t and 3.5t four-wheel counterbalanced trucks, and a compact 1.6t three-wheeler that's likely to be its best-seller in the UK - BYD currently offers 57 variants of truck. It is currently testing a a powered pallet truck, a ride-on pallet truck and a tugger before announcing their addition to the existing range. It has also said it is developing an Iron Phosphate-powered 8t 'big' truck.

UK Mezzanine Flooring Company, QA has researched other companies / brands owned by Warren Buffett:

1. Heinz (Food Production)

2. Fruit of the Loom (Clothing Manufacturer)

3. Benjamin Moore (Paint Manufacturer)

4. GEICO (Insurance Company)

5. Borshiems (Luxury Jewellery & Gifts)

6. NetJets (Private Jet Company)

7. The Pampered Chef (Kitchen Accessories)

If you are cost-conscious in regards to your warehouse operation then a BYD forklift may be of interest. At QA we offer storage solutions, space planning and of course we are one of the largest mezzanine floor companies in the UK. 

How The BYD Forklifts Release Will Change The Face Of Warehouse Forklifts

Name: Paul Scroggs
Company Name: QA Mezzanines
Address: Brewery Court, North Street, Bristol. BS3 1JS

Telephone: 0117 953 3232

Email:  martyn@digitalNRG.co.uk

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Bristol, UK - Earlier today, QA Mezzanine announced information of the forth coming BYD Forklifts, its new forklift truck with lower running costs set to go live Autumn 2015. For anyone with even a passing interest in the world of warehouse forklifts, this launch will be worth paying attention to, as it's set to shake things up.

Currently, with even a passing glance, a person will notice lower running costs in their warehouse. The Owner at QA Mezzanine, Paul Scroggs, makes a point of saying "things are going to change when BYD Forklifts launches".

Paul Scroggs continues... "Where you'll always see our competitors doing the same old thing, BYD will be offering is its iron phosphate battery technology, a clean and highly efficient powertrain. They do this because they believe t's time things were done better and more efficiently. Ultimately this is going to be a huge benefit to our customers because they can save up to €2,000 per truck per shift per year."

QA Mezzanine was established in 1990. It has been doing business 25 years and it has always aimed to innovate in any large or small way it can, due to the firm belief that innovation drives progress and greater profitability. QA's core businesses is maximising warehouse space to allow for greater efficiency, productivity and ultimately profitability.

Currently, the closest thing to BYD Forklifts is lead-acid battery-powered forklifts, but BYD Forklifts improved on this by creating a power system that allows opportunistic charging of a battery that is designed to last for the life of the vehicle. This alone is predicted to make BYD forklift truck popular with lower running costs for customers in the warehouse forklifts space, quickly.

Once again, BYD Forklifts is set to launch Autumn 2015. To find out more, the place to visit is http://storageandmezzaninesuk.blogspot.co.uk/2015/05/uplifting-chinese-forklifts-coming-to-uk.html

For further information about QA Mezzanine, this can be discovered at http://qa-net.co.uk

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Summary:

QA Mezzanine releases information on how a forklift truck with lower running costs will change things in the warehouse forklifts space for the better. Further information can be found at http://qa-net.co.uk.

The Benefits Of Installing a Mezzanine Floor to Your Bottom Line

Mezzanine Flooring Company Bristol - What is Mezzanine Floor?

In the business world, it is all about the bottom line. Business owners and operators are ultimately concerned with making money at the end of the business day. In the pursuit of this, it is important that the actual building that houses the company or business is fully functional, meeting all of the various needs of the business at hand. Without proper function, efficiency and productivity is low and therefore the bottom line is negatively affected.

One of the many things that can help a business maximise efficiency is fully utilising the building space already available. Mezzanine flooring is a definite plus in this area. Mezzanine floors, sometimes referred to as lofts, are those floors that are suspended between the roof and the ground floor of buildings. These floors provide additional space for numerous things and are accessible via staircases or lifts. The building can gain double the space if mezzanine floors are in use.

In its general form, mezzanine floor is about making the most of office space. Several commercial premises have excessive, unused headroom which is unproductive and expensive to heat or cool. Warehouses are tall, and most of the space above the warehouse floor is generally wasted space which could be put to use. Installing a mezzanine floor can allow to have more storage space above the existing warehouse, or can allow to have offices upstairs and storage space downstairs, or even production space downstairs with storage space upstairs. 

A mezzanine floor will transform wasted head space into useful office space. With office space at a premium business will also save money by installing a mezzanine floor compared to relocating to a larger building. Expanding existing premises considerably within its own foot print, at minimal disruption to business, mezzanine floors can at least double office space. If the business has long headroom, it could even means tripling the office by installing double mezzanine floors.

Mezzanine Flooring Company Bristol - Why Mezzanine floor?

In the current economic climate, moving premises is a risky business. As the economy continues to flat line, with growth being minimal and a triple dip recession only narrowly avoided, many businesses are treading very cautiously. Moving to larger premises at a time of such uncertainty is a risk that few businesses can afford to take. At the same time, it is vitally important to allow business to grow if the opportunity is there. With very little growth around in the economy, if business is growing well then one needs to have the facilities to accommodate that growth and take full advantage of it. Essentially, one needs more space without the risk of moving to larger premises. That is where using mezzanine floors come in.

Mezzanine Flooring Company Bristol  - Things to know about mezzanine floor

For many businesses, space is incredibly valuable. Many of us need more of it, yet we don’t want to take the step of moving to bigger premises in times of economic uncertainty. Therefore, the logical alternative is to utilise the space we already have in the best way possible. Different businesses have different operational needs and there is no ‘one size fits all’. However mezzanine floors are versatile and can be installed for automation, warehouse, production office, and storage and retail environments. 

When business runs out of space, mezzanine floors are cheaper alternatives to maximise the space that is already available than relocating to new premise that is costly and time consuming. Installation is quick and in most cases businesses can quickly adapt to meet new challenges that they might face. 

Mezzanine floor can help to improve operations by giving more space to manoeuvre which means improving operational efficiency. Mezzanine floors are also sought as strategy to increase productivity, motivate staff and create a long lasting impression with customers and prospects. Apart from putting off customers, it is unrealistic to expect employees to perform to the best of their abilities while working in a messy and cluttered workspace.

To discover the huge benefits that may be available to your business please contact QA a Mezzanine Flooring Company based in Bristol or call 0117 953 3232