"The innovative mast design provides additional stability," says Chris van de Werdt, Product Strategy Manager Big Trucks, Hyster Europe. The design increases the residual load capacity of each truck by at least 400 kilograms for the shaft-guided sideshift fork carriage. The new dual lift masts are available for the H8-12XM-6, H13-16XM-6 and H10XM-12 models.

Fork carriage with vision
"With a large selection of special equipment and attachments, these forklifts can be adapted to a wide range of requirements," says van de Werdt. In addition, the distance between the mast profiles has been increased, thus improving the view of the attachment and the load. The chains have been moved to the outside of the mast and the new fork carriage has slim struts on the top.

"Drivers can now see through and over the fork carriage," says van de Werdt. The visibility conditions are therefore ideal - both at ground level and at the height of the truck loading area." The more open design also shifts the load's center of gravity, as the load is closer to the truck.

Quick change of attachments
The dual-function fork carriage for hook-guided forks with sideshift and fork adjustment enables attachments to be changed quickly. This makes these forklifts suitable for use in stevedoring operations where frequent changes are required between handling steel, timber and general cargo.

"Rental companies also benefit from the quick and easy adaptation process," says van de Werdt. "In addition, the truck can be transported easily as the overall height is now lower." There is also the option of increasing the forward tilt of the mast to 27 degrees during transportation (standard tilt is 15 degrees). This allows the mast height to be lowered by a further 310 millimetres. Furthermore, the models with a load capacity of 13 to 16 tons have a narrower width of 2.54 meters. All vehicles in this series are narrower than 2.55 meters. This makes transportation much easier.