The new forklifts are a dream

“The job of a forklift truck driver used to be real back-breaking work,” says Willi Salzmann, head of the logistics department at KOHLHAGE. “I’ve been with KOHLHAGE for 38 years now and my job has changed completely over the years. In the past, a forklift truck just had a windscreen. Today we have both heaters and air conditioners on every truck. I used to have to get down and physically help with almost every loading operation. Today I can adjust my truck so that I can stay in the cabin. That’s great, especially in winter and when it rains. In the past, I sometimes had to search in the warehouse when I wanted to load certain products. Today, my computer colleague tells me exactly where the goods are stored. And it also tells me the available quantity.

On the other hand, it used to be quieter sometimes. The frequency at which we loaded lorries was lower. Not long ago, we had about 1 articulated lorry per hour going in or out. Today it’s already more than 1.5 in the same period.

In order to keep up this pace and to increase our performance even more, the management has invested: 4 new forklifts are in use with immediate effect. We need them too, because we are a total of 8 forklift drivers who keep the logistics running here in 1.5 shifts. The new forklifts are a dream, at least for me and my colleagues: Connection to the WLAN, adjustability of the tines from the cabin, which, by the way, is completely closed. When I first started here, I always dreamed of having such a piece of equipment,” Salzmann says happily.