Masonry Magazine April 2003 Page. 25
forward side of the scaffolding so that the scaffolding is leaning toward the wall instead of away from it. In order to do that, the operator actually has to land The biggest single advantage to a telehandler over a standard rough terrain forklift truck is that you can get a much higher reach with a telehandler. that material where it's very difficult to see where the forks are. Having the system where you have the horizontal forklift withdrawal really makes a difficult task much easier."
The job site environment is rarely smooth and clear. Rough terrain forklifts have had a strong following because they allow material movement over a variety of landscapes. The telehandler matches that with multiple functions and greater reach. Dave White, product manager for telehandlers at Ingersoll-Rand, Shippensburg, Pa., explains, "The biggest single advantage to a telehandler over a standard rough terrain forklift truck is that you can get a much higher reach with a telehandler. Your average forklift would get you up to about the third floor of a construction site. With some of the bigger telehandlers, like our 1056 machine, you can get up above the fifth floor. It certainly helps in the situation where you have some upper floor masonry work to do. It helps to be able to get up to about 54 foot of reach. For example, we have a practical placement height of 54 feet, and a practical placement load of 6000 lbs. You can move a good amount of material up relatively high, pretty quickly-higher and faster than you can with a forklift."
And if those specifications aren't enough, Ingersoll-Rand (1-R) has a machine with a 56-foot boom and rated capacity of 10,000 lbs. all the way up to the top. And I-R isn't the only company offering longer reach than the "standard" 41- to 44-foot boom. Bristow of CareLift says, "We supply our products to the heavy-duty demands of the North American construction and masonry industry. Our Zoom Boom offers a range of products for the mason contractor from 6,000 to 10,000 lbs with lifting heights from 42-feet to 56-feet."
One of the longest reaches is found on a Pettibone unit. "We believe we have the highest reach in the industry right now," claims Walsh. "It will allow you to land a load at 66 feet. If you get much higher than that it's hard for the operator to see. We've had demand for greater reach, but we don't intend to go much higher than 66 feet. I believe beyond that height, you get into a situation where the customer is going to have to rent a crane."
One feature most telehandlers share is multi-wheel steering As Cooper from Caterpillar explains, "We offer three modes of steering-crab, two-wheel and four-wheel. This, along with offering a differential lock, enables the operator to work in poor underfoot conditions. A rear axle lock is standard on all of our machines. This makes the machine more stable when lifting the boom above 45-degrees."
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The Voice of the Mason Contractor
April 2003
Masonry 23