Written by Olivia Di Falco

“Sick of carrying the weight of your business on your shoulders? Let one of our high-quality pallet forks do the heavy lifting for you!”

Should I continue to use my pallet forks to lift lighter loads if they are worn?

This is a question we get asked frequently, and the answer is no. Forks that are worn beyond 10% of their original thickness are no longer suitable for use. Therefore, investing in pallet forks that have been designed well, specifically tailored to your load capacity needs, and manufactured from quality materials is an important step for your business that will save you from encountering issues further down the track.

Pallet Forks Defined

Pallet forks are one of the most useful and resourceful pieces of equipment you can own. Pallet forks most commonly consist of two steel arms attached to a fork frame, that are able to lift and move heavy loads or ladened pallets around a workspace. A pallet fork attachment can essentially convert different machines into a forklift, but with fewer limitations than a forklift has, such as issues with visibility, and forklifts are often unsuitable for rough terrain.

Joe’s Top Five

Here are five reasons why investing in Pallet forks will be a beneficial and rewarding investment for your business, as explained by Joe, one of our many attachment specialists.

1. As pallet forks are very versatile, with little restriction on length of materials, they can be used for a wide variety of tasks. These include lifting materials for roofing or housing projects, lifting pallets of material or brick, handling pipe or tube, loading boxes of freight, handling heavy amounts of seed and fertilizer, or really for just about any application within reason as long as capacity allows it.

2. Pallet forks can be made to suit virtually any project, meaning we can custom design forks to suit your requirements. As experienced earthmoving and machinery suppliers, we will be able to determine the necessary load and lift capacity, and pair you with the correct set of forks depending on whether your usage is light, medium or heavy duty. In addition, forks can be painted in whichever colour is desired.

3. A Pallet fork attachment is also a relatively inexpensive solution to common workshop time and labor constraints. Pallet forks can be attached to a variety of machines, such as tele handlers, loaders and mobile plants, and such machines can be utilized on mine sites, construction and building sites and also for agricultural use.

4. We offer affordable repairs and straightening of fork frames and fork arms, we can check for compliancy, if the pallet forks are not serviceable we can offer cost effective replacements, and we also offer re-certification of forks.

5. Contatore Engineering offers a range of specialised forks to suit our customers every need; these include clamp forks, euro pickup forks, and brick forks. All forks are Engineer certified and designed with a high level of safety in mind. For example, the Clamp Forks feature hydraulic top clamps which assist in the handling of materials by steadying them against the fork arms, therefore mitigating the risk of injury to personnel or loss of materials. Options to consider include Hydraulic fork tyne positioning technology, which accommodates functional hydraulic control from inside the machine cabin, meaning the operator does not have to leave the cabin to adjust or move the fork arms.

As stated above by Joe, the benefits of pallet forks are endless, and will make light work of many mundane work site tasks. He also suggests for best practice to ensure the weight of materials is evenly distributed across both fork arms, and lastly, to keep the fork arms close to the ground when transporting items so that the users vision is not obstructed. Most importantly, always remember to adhere to safety guidelines when operating any machinery, and to ensure operators have the appropriate license and training.

Speak to our highly qualified and knowledgeable team to determine which forks are right for you.