The history of the hand pallet truck
Hand pallet trucks are relatively simple devices that give a single person the ability to transport one or more pallets without the use of complicated heavy equipment such as a forklift. The hand pallet truck, which is also known as a pallet jack or pallet lifter, does not have a large design, allowing you to slide a set of blades into the open area of a pallet, no matter where it is placed. . A truck gently lifts the pallet so that one person can transport it to another location. The original pallet trucks used cranks and levers to lift elevated pallets off the ground, but today’s trucks use more advanced technology, like hydraulics and small batteries, to give you the power to lift heavy pallets.
A basic hand pallet is carefully designed to have a set of blades that align with the open area of the pallet and can quickly and intuitively lift the pallet several inches off the ground. At the opposite end of the device, a control panel allows the distance between the two blades to be adjusted, so that the user can lift popsicles of different shapes and sizes. A sturdy base supports both the two blades and the control panel, and is mounted on a set of small flexible wheels for maximum maneuverability. Most hand paddles have a set of rear wheels that swivel, to make it easier to tackle corners. Some more advanced trucks have swivel wheels at the front and rear.
Most historians of the hand pallet truck trace its origins back to the first half of the 20th century. In many manufacturing plants, the need to move raw materials and finished goods more efficiently was becoming increasingly important in order to achieve higher production levels. Looking more like a forklift than today’s hand pallet trucks, early versions of the pallet truck were useful for transporting a small amount of goods from the warehouse to the production floor, but they were still clumsy, wasteful, and inefficient.
The hand pallet truck we know today was “officially” invented in 1939 by George Raymond, Sr. and Bill House, when they filed the patent. Although the exact way they invented the pallet truck has been forgotten, the original patent paperwork still exists. With the invention of the hand pallet truck, a single employee could now lift and move an entire pallet loaded with merchandise. The loaded pallet could be easily transported, requiring less time or resources to move than transporting the materials by hand or even with the use of a hand truck.
The biggest advantage of a hand pallet truck is that it is relatively small compared to other devices that perform a similar task. This makes it extremely easy to use the truck in small, tight spaces where even the smallest forklift would not fit. The smaller size and swivel casters make it extremely easy to navigate winding spaces. For these reasons, manufacturers have stocked dozens of trucks so that they can be used in various departments. From the plant floor to shipping areas, hand pallet trucks are used in almost every department and will continue to be one of the most useful tools for manufacturers.