If you have been in the logistics and cargo business, then you should know that unloading a container is a very stressful and risky operation. Especially when it comes to fragile materials like glasses, tiles, gypsums, and so on. And for safety reasons, not everyone is qualified to do this kind of job. But specialized companies with technical know-how can provide the expertise required to perform such operations successfully. And it is not something we recommend to compromise on. Among the material handling machines used for lifting purposes, forklifts, cranes, high up truck cranes also known as truck-mounted cranes are the more appropriate. However, this article will focus on the hi up truck as one of the best options for material handling projects.

Definition Of a Hi Up Truck

High Up Truck

High Up Truck or Truck Mounted Crane

As the name implies a Hi up truck or high up crane is a self-loading truck that provides both, lifting and transportation solutions. Also called truck-mounted cranes, hi up trucks are mainly consisted of two parts or sections. The first part is the truck, which aims for supporting and transporting loads. And the other part is the crane, which is employed for lifting and handling materials. The combination of these two parts offers one of the most convenient machines for lifting and transporting heavy items.

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What Do You Need High Up Truck Cranes For?

With its double functions, high up trucks are very useful machines in the logistics industry. Especially when it comes to transporting a heavy item from one place to another and then offloading it. Only very few trucks have this multipurpose functionality. Having this specialized truck may prevent you to use an extra machine such as a forklift or a standard crane. This is an advantage. Typically, a hi up truck is ideal for the following operations:

Unloading Containers

Famio unloading containers With Hi Up Truck

Famio unloading containers with Hi Up Truck

Usually, when it comes to unloading containers, then forklift trucks are the more ideal option. They are great machines that can take items out of a cargo one by one without too many troubles. However, sometimes those forklifts may be unable to operate due to specific reasons. For instance, the shape of the material in the container might be too thin to fit on the two forks. Or the position of the container on the trailer might be not safe for the forklift to engage any operations. Those kinds of challenges can make it very difficult for a forklift to perform the job in a safe manner. In such a scenario, a high up truck is the best way to go. With its flexible boom crane, it can easily handle any unloading project. Whether there are fragile materials or not.

Lifting and Relocating 

Lifting & relocating items-Truck-mounted cranes

Heavy Lifting & Relocating Operations

Sometimes, you may not need to unload any containers. Just to relocate or reposition some cargos or items from one place to another within the same premises. That is where the high-up truck comes in. Specifically designed to transport, load and offload heavy materials, a high-up truck is suitable for this type of application. Additionally, it will save you time, money and reduce risks. Another option would be to use a forklift. But this is only applicable under certain circumstances. For example, the container should be empty and situated at a low level or where the forklift can reach safely. Otherwise, it will be too risky to engage in such projects with a forklift.

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Truck-mounted Cranes For Transportation

container transportation with High Up Truck cranes

Container transportation with High Up Truck Cranes

Generally, for transporting containers, semi bed trailers, prime mover trucks or low bed trucks are the best ways to go. However, they are not the only lorries that can perform this task. High up truck cranes can also do the same. Whether it is 20 feet or 40 feet containers, several sizes of truck-mounted cranes are available to fulfill various requirements. So, in case you want to transport an empty container or any heavy items of few tons from one city to another with no worries about the loading aspects, then using a hi up truck is the most convenient and affordable option.

Handling Heavy Materials

Materials Handling-truck mounted crane

Materials Handling using truck mounted crane/Hi up Truck

Actually, using high up truck mounted cranes is not only for containers. All these operations apply to many other materials such as generators, bulky equipment, pallets and so on. They can lift materials from few kgs to around 20 tons with a boom expandable from 1 to 15 meters. Nowadays with the high demand and challenges in the construction, mining, and many other industries, new high up trucks are available in the market, able to lift up to 100 tons.

To conclude, as you can see, hi up truck or truck-mounted cranes are very useful machines that can be used for diverse purposes. So, this is a great and powerful alternative to many common lifting equipment. If you are looking for the right lifting and transportation solutions in Kenya, then Famio Forklifts and Cranes can assist you. They provide the best equipment rental services and expertise for your material handling project in the country.

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Written By Famio Services Team