The proper maintenance and handling of forklift batteries is imperative to their longevity. There’s a right way and a wrong way to maintain and handle forklift batteries and doing it properly will ensure your investment is maximized.

Proper Handling

Forklift batteries can be heavy and dangerous if not handled properly, so it’s important to be educated on the correct way to handle them. Use these tips for some ideas about handling batteries properly:

1. • Use special equipment, like a walkie pallet jack equipped with a transfer carriage, to maneuver the battery. Because of the weight of some forklift batteries, no single person should attempt to move a forklift battery alone. Steel toe shoes should also be worn while moving the batteries.

• • An eye and hand washing station should be nearby. Should any hazardous liquid come in contact with hands or eyes, a hand and eye washing station should be conveniently located nearby to remove it as quickly as possible.

• • Chemical-resistant protective gear should be worn while maneuvering batteries. Having a conveniently located eye and hand washing station is necessary, but chemical-resistant gear should also be worn to keep the need for the station at bay. This includes safety glasses and gloves.

1. • Remove all metallic jewelry when handling and charging.

Proper Charging

Properly charging a battery is all about doing it at the right time, for the right amount of time. Use these tips when charging your forklift battery:

1. • Designate an area specifically for battery charging. This is an OSHA-recommended best practice.

• • Remember that lead acid batteries should be charged at 80 percent depth of discharge. Charging prior to 80 percent can result in reduced battery life depending on the type of battery.  Discharging the battery past 80 percent depth of discharge can also be detrimental.

• • If your battery overflows, take time to rinse it. Rinsing your battery after an overflow will help prevent corrosion.

• • Ensure compatibility between the battery and the charger. The charger that is being used should match the voltage/amperage of the battery. Color coding the connectors and clearly labeling the chargers can help to prevent accidentally connecting a battery to the wrong charger. Proper training is also imperative.

• • Avoid overcharging the battery. Some batteries have battery management systems that can prevent overcharging. If yours doesn’t, take precautions not to overcharge it, which can reduce the battery’s life.

• • Charge and operate the batteries at the proper temperature. Charging a battery in extreme cold or heat can cause reduced service life. Since battery types and specifications may vary, contact the battery manufacturer for their recommended charging temperature range.

• • Add water when needed after the charging cycle. Adding water to a wet-cell battery prior to charging the battery is a common mistake. Pure or distilled water should be used and the watering should occur after a full charge cycle to bring the electrolytes to the proper level.

• • Ensure the charger is turned off before connecting or disconnecting the battery.

The cost of a forklift is always more than the dollar amount you pay for it. Service and maintenance … repairs … downtime to complete maintenance and repairs … replacement parts. It all adds up.

At Toyota, we get it. And we’re committed to being your complete material handling partner throughout the entire life of your ownership — that’s the Toyota 360 Support Promise that comes standard on every Toyota Forklift you buy and allows you to take advantage of:

Toyota Certified Technicians
Toyota Genuine Parts
Toyota’s industry-leading standard warranty program
The Toyota Mobile Service app

But even with all of that, many customers find that they want even more peace of mind — a way to reduce the risk of maintenance emergencies and lower the cost of potential repairs even further.

Enter Toyota 360 Support Plus: an upgrade option that provides you a year of planned maintenance and an extended product assurance guarantee with the Toyota Extra Care Warranty program. It also allows you to add on the extra option of T-Matics support.

Both are fantastic plans that provide the most comprehensive support in the industry. But maybe you’re wondering: Is upgrading to Toyota 360 Support Plus right for you?

To get a recommendation specific to your operation — taking into account all of the variables and considerations of your usage and application — we recommend contacting Dillon Toyota Lift. But here is a good general guideline.

Upgrading to Toyota 360 Support Plus May Be Right for You If …

You have a large fleet to manage with a lot of moving pieces to keep on task and productive.
You would have a productivity disaster on your hands if even one of your forklifts needed repairs unexpectedly — and you want to minimize every possible risk.
You want extended product support assurance.
You don’t mind spending a little more up front in order to save a lot of time and money later.
You use telematics on your forklifts and want the added option of support for that technology.
You prefer to have things done on your timetable as much as possible.
You’d rather be proactive in preventing unexpected downtime emergencies than reactive in dealing with them when they arise.

Original Post: Shannon Potelicki, Content & Communications Copywriter, Toyota Material Handling

Let’s be honest. There are so many statistics and metrics involved with a forklift, it can be tough to understand what is what. There are tire types, mast types, various heights and dimensions that are all vital to know. Each of these needs consideration when considering what forklift is right for your operation.

One metric that is often overlooked is forklift free lift. A forklift’s free lift is the maximum height you can raise the forks without changing the mast height. There are two instances where this typically happens: when the inner mast rails extends past the outer mast rails or when the load backrest or carriage exceeds the height of the outer mast rails.

It is important to understand forklift free lift, especially if you are stacking or unstacking in confined spaces such as trailers, containers, and racking systems. These application have height restrictions and might cause product or equipment and possible safety concerns for operators or nearby pedestrians. There are two types of free lift a forklift can have: limited free lift or full free lift.

Forklift Free Lift – Limited Free Lift

When a forklift has limited free lift, it means that the inner mast rails will extend either immediately or shortly after lift is requested.  Limited free lift occurs with single-stage masts and two-stage masts with no free lift cylinder (see below on Full Free Lift). The amount of free lift can vary based on the condition and adjustment of the forklift’s lift chains as well as other factors such as fork thickness.

Forklift Free Lift – Full Free Lift

Full-free lift on a forklift means that the forks can be raised without immediately extending the inner mast channels. Full-free lift is available only on masts that have free lift cylinders. A free lift cylinder consists of a lift cylinder rod and assembly that is used to lift the carriage prior to the rear cylinders engaging.  This allows the carriage and forks to be lifted to a certain point prior to the inner mast rails. In many cases, you can get several feet of free lift depending on the mast design.

Full-free lift is helpful in areas where you need to lift a load, but have to be mindful of overhead obstructions.  Common areas where this is useful are for buildings with low ceiling heights and on trailers or box cars.

Original Post:  Kenny Trusnik, MArketing Systems & eCommerce Specialist, Toyota Material Handling, USA

Forklift operator safety training is pivotal for ensuring safe, efficient operations. Unfortunately, even the most effective and reliable forklift operators can still find themselves in situations that put them at risk of tipovers and injury.

To help prevent these inevitable situations, Toyota has equipped most of our forklifts since 1999 with the patented System of Active Stability (SAS.) SAS is an efficient and effective forklift system that takes over 3,000 readings per second to detect unsafe operating conditions. If a safety hazard is detected, the SAS activates one of its two main features that improve lateral and longitudinal stability of the forklift.

Active Control Rear Stabilizer System
The Active Control Rear Stabilizer System uses a patented swing lock cylinder to increase lateral stability by locking the rear steer axle. By locking this in place, the forklift’s stability footprint is converted from its usual triangle to a rectangular pattern, reducing risks of a lateral tipover.


Active Mast Function Control System
When sensing risks for a longitudinal tipover, the Active Mast Function Controller System triggers forward tilt control or rear-tilt speed control.


When activated, the forward tilt control detects the load weight and the extended mast height. It then reduces the reverse tilt speed of the mast by half of its unrestricted speed.


The rear tilt speed control similarly detects the mast height and load weight to decrease the mast’s tilt speed, reducing chances of a load spilling or a reverse tipover.Toyota’s SAS system is the first and only of its kind in the material handling industry. It has been accepted across the industry as one of the most important safety developments in material handling industry. That’s because Toyota SAS is key to protecting your most valuable assets – your operators.

Toyota SAS Protects Forklift Operators
Toyota engineers developed a dynamic forklift system for safety comprised of 10 sensors, 3 actuators, and a controller which protects the driver, load, and surrounding environment while facilitating efficient, productive material handling. System of Active Stability (SAS) works by continually monitoring the forklift’s operations and automatically taking protective action when needed.
This was all implemented on most Toyota forklifts in 1999 in order to protect operators in potentially hazardous situations. Here are some specific ways that that Toyota SAS forklift system help to protect operators.
The Active Mast Control and Swing-Lock Cylinder functionalities exist as protectants for expertly trained operators. They add an additional layer of security that can increase safety when paired with proper forklift operation.
Since transforming the safety triangle to a rectangle is not possible with a 3-wheel configuration, SAS takes a different approach to safeguarding stability of 3-wheel forklift models. Excessive speed when cornering is a leading risk factor for lateral tip-over accidents. The Speed Reduction When Cornering feature overrides manual controls by limiting the drive speed when cornering.
Some of the most potentially dangerous forklift uses occur when a load is being moved at height. The front angle control helps protect against forward tip over and losing goods off the forks, causing them to fall. The read tilt speed control reduces the risk of dropped loads occurring when loads could potentials slip over the mast.
Operator protection is our number one concern at Toyota, which is why we invest so heavily in safety features for our Toyota forklifts.

Toyota SAS Myths Debunked
The System of Active Stability (SAS), which is unique to Toyota and comes standard on most Toyota forklifts, has been created to assist in safety. And with all systems that are exclusive and top of the line, investors in such technologies legitimately ask whether it’s really necessary and consider all possible problems. But the fact is Toyota SAS offers only benefits to the safety of your operators. To offer peace of mind, we can help to debunk some myths about Toyota SAS.
Myth #1: SAS causes forklift operators to drive unsafely.
Truth: Any properly trained forklift operator is capable of operating a forklift safely. Properly trained forklift operators understand that even with SAS, it’s important to operate the forklift safely.
Myth #2: SAS must be inspected every 40 hours.
Truth: SAS actually only requires a 30-second check every 250 hours.
Myth #3: SAS causes excess downtime.
Truth: There are 200,000 forklifts with SAS today and according to studies, those units have 99.7 percent up-time.
Myth #4: There are 3,000 sensors in the SAS.
Truth: There are only 14 sensors in the SAS. Those 14 sensors automatically monitor the forklift 3,000 times per minute.
The benefit of Toyota SAS is just one reason why Toyota continues to be an industry leader in material handling safety. Need more reason to invest in Toyota SAS? There are clear financial benefits as well.
Toyota SAS Offers Positive Financial Implications
The benefits of Toyota SAS extends to the balance sheet, as the overall cost of a forklift accident far outweighs the upfront expenditure for a Toyota and the minimal cost of maintenance. How minimal is that maintenance cost? SAS requires little-to-no maintenance. In fact, of all the SAS systems on forklifts in the field, the average cost of maintenance per year is around $17.
Now, compare that to the cost of a tip over…
SAS helps prevent accidents from happening due to an unstable forklift. If it were able to prevent just one accident, it would pay for itself one-thousand times or more. That’s huge.
At $17 per year, SAS is the best (and probably most economical) decision you can make for your business. And since the forklift system is exclusive to Toyota, that’s just one more reason to make your material handling fleet a Toyota fleet.

Forklift certification, sometimes referred to as forklift licensing, is a requirement of any operator of forklifts in a given workplace. While it’s an employer’s responsibility to provide training, at Toyota we’ve found that operators are the ones that have the most at stake in forklift training programs. They are often the associates who ask the best questions when it comes to making sure they’re in compliance with OSHA forklift training standards. That’s why I wanted to take the time to provide three short reminders to operators and employers alike about training requirements.

Three Reminders about Forklift Certification

1. The OSHA Certification Standard for forklift training requires classroom and practical training.

There are two required parts to forklift training:

• Classroom training can be completed online, with educators in the classroom, through video, or a combination of any of these. The intention here is to give operators the knowledge they need about forklifts to successfully (and safely) operate them in a work environment.
• Practical training is required so that operators demonstrate their ability to operate a forklift before they are authorized to use them in the workplace.

2. You have to be trained on all equipment types that you operate and for specific applications.

OSHA requires that training be completed for all “types” of forklifts that an operator uses. For example, if you use a sit-down forklift and operate an order picker, you need to receive forklift certification training to operate both. Do you use a specialized attachment like a paper roll clamp? The use of that attachment needs to be integrated into your training. If you’re operating equipment you haven’t received training on, it’s worth a conversation with your supervisor to get certified ASAP. Training requirements can also vary depending on application (such as in a maritime or construction application).

3. You have to be recertified every three years.

It’s easy to fall out of compliance on this one, especially if you’re a seasoned operator who’s been using similar equipment for years. If your three year anniversary since training is approaching, make sure you let your supervisor know you need to be recertified.

Dillon Toyota Lift offers forklift training for their customer’s operators. No matter the forklift, we will make sure you’re in compliance with all your material handling equipment.

Industrial jobs call for moving large objects in unanticipated locations. As a manager or operator, it can be frustrating when one-size fits-all heavy lifting rigging equipment fails to actually fit.

Indoor industrial jobs sometimes call for moving materials that don’t adhere to the traditional applications of cranes and other rigging apparatuses. These machines are great for lifting and setting down steel beams, heavy pieces of equipment, shipping containers, and other objects that will be primarily used outdoors or in building construction. But for indoor jobs, you might need to move objects into tight spaces. Traditionally, high-capacity, indoor jobs can be completed using a heavy duty forklift. But what happens when the object you’re moving doesn’t fit the common specifications associated with pallets, containers, or even other objects with consistent specs (like steel sheets, pipes, or lumber)? You might need to move heavy manufacturing equipment or heavy-duty machinery. So what do you do when that object does not comply with the lifting capacity or recommended load center for your traditional forklift or other material handling equipment?

Heavy Lifting Rigging Equipment: Finding a Forklift that Works

Luckily, the right forklift can work as heavy lifting rigging equipment if it comes equipped with a telescopic boom used to rig materials. For example, Toyota’s High-Capacity Adjustable Wheelbase comes standard with a telescopic boom that can rig materials for movement indoors. The forks can quickly be removed and replaced with the boom, meaning you’ll be able to move materials as efficiently as possible.

Once your uncommonly-shaped material is rigged, moving into tight, indoor spaces will be an easier process as a result. And for even tighter fits, having an adjustable wheelbase on the Toyota can be a major benefit, since the High-Capacity Adjustable Wheelbase allows you to extend and retract the wheelbase while also adding or removing counterweight slabs to increase and decrease load capacity. This can be a major benefit as long as the weight and shape of the material you’re moving falls within the recommendations at the specific wheelbase length and amount of counterweight slabs.

Remote control operation can also be an excellent feature when moving this type of material or manufacturing equipment, another option offered on the High-Capacity Adjustable Wheelbase. Remote capability means you can get out of the operator cab in order to ensure you have an improved view of the awkward object you’re moving and other objects in the facility (like racking or other machinery).

But why buy this expensive product for a one or two-time a year movement? Not to worry; forklifts with rigging capability like the Toyota High-Capacity Adjustable Wheelbase are prevalent in the rental market. As long as you are an operator or can employ an operator who has been trained to handle such a machine, you’ll be able to get one on site, move your object, and send it away quickly, so you can get back to doing whatever it is that you do best.

Original Post: Jake Stewart, Digital Marketing Specialist, Toyota Material Handling USA