Advances in hydrostatic (fluid drive) technology for forklift trucks have made them safer, longer-lasting, more reliable less costly to maintain and more environmentally friendly.

But many companies don’t consider the long-term benefits when making purchasing decisions, says Tim Balint, president and CEO of Balint/Ryder Handling Equipment.

“It’s a technology that’s been around for quite some time, but very few people are taking advantage of it,” Balint says. “It’s a little higher priced to start. The payback has a lot to do with how often the unit is being used.

“In high-use applications, you can not only pay back the cost but you can also pay for the truck in maintenance savings in five years. “I have one customer that saved in the area of $130,000. They had a fleet of 12.

“I think slowly people are starting to catch on. So many times, people are focused on purchase price – what is the best deal.”

Part of the problem is separate budgets for purchasing and maintenance departments, he says. The cost of fuel, repairs, brakes, transmission, downtime, oil changes and other ongoing necessities should be considered in evaluating purchase prices.

“The biggest problem is a lot of people don’t track their true costs,” Balint says. “You’ve got to look at it as a whole. We have to sell more to business owners or board members.”

Balint/Ryder, of South Bend and Goshen, opened 40 years ago and has carried Linde forklifts since 1972.

“We cover basically the northern third of Indiana and the bordering counties of Michigan,” Balint says. “The technology has been around since the early ’70s. The technology’s becoming more dependable and refined.”

A typical forklift usually has a lifetime of 12,000 to 14,000 hours, he says, while the hydrostatic drive equipment usually last 30,000 to 40,000 hours because it operates on much lower RPMs. Some customers’ equipment has more than 60,000 hours.

“Trucks utilizing hydrostatic drive have been proven to reduce fuels consumption by one-third to one-half that of a torque converter equipped truck,” Balint says. “Over the span of five years, that can account for several thousands of dollars in savings.”

Because the trucks do not use brakes to stop — releasing the drive pedal closes off the flow of oil that is moving the truck — the cost of brake replacement is eliminated. Also, the trucks require fewer oil changes, saving an estimated 150 gallons of oil over the truck’s lifetime.


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