Electric vs Manual

Electric pallet jacks are powered by a battery, which makes it easy to lift and move heavier and stacked pallets. Manual pallet jacks require manual pumping to lift and move material. Ultimately, the decision of which pallet jack to choose depends on the specific needs of the individual or business. 

Which Pallet Jack is Right for My Business?

Manual pallet jacks require manual pumping to lift loads and to move material you need to pull or push the unit. The manpower a business has will determine the efficiency of its workforce, as well as how it handles inventory. Another major factor in deciding whether a business should use manual or electric pallet jacks is the size of its facility and amount of time it spends moving inventory around. For example, if a business operates within a warehouse that is single-story with few obstructions, they may not need an electric pallet jack because the space does not require one. However, if a business operates out of a warehouse with multiple floors and many obstructions, an employee could spend most  of his or her time moving around the obstacles to get stock, so an electric pallet jack would be very beneficial.

Manual Pallet Jacks

To weigh the pros and cons of using manual versus electric pallet jacks, it's important to understand how each works. Hand pallet jacks are often referenced as a manual pallet jacks, hand pallet trucks, pump trucks, jiggers, hand trucks or manual forklifts. A typical upright warehouse has the following types of stationary equipment: conveyors (to move products), powered unit load devices (platforms that increase productivity by allowing operators to stand upright instead of bending over), and walking pallet truck/pallets (for moving material within a facility). The walking pallet truck/pallets are often manually operated by warehouse employees by pumping to lift material and pulling or pushing to move the load.

Electric Pallet Jacks

Motorized pallet jacks, also known as electric pallet trucks, walkies or power jacks are motorized to allow lifting and moving of heavier and stacked pallets. They're generally moved by a throttle on the handle to move forward or in reverse and steered by swinging the handle in the intended direction.

Benefits of Electric

Electric pallet jacks are powered by a battery, which makes it easy to lift and move heavier and stacked pallets. They're generally moved by a throttle on the handle to move forward or in reverse and steered by swinging the handle in the intended direction. Powered Pallet Jacks have three major benefits:

1) they provide quicker movement of goods around warehouse floors;

2) they save time from having to manually pump them up and when going up ramps;

3) they require less physical effort from employees because it can be done with less muscle strength required for manual handling and increasing efficiency.

Benefits of Manual

 

One key advantage of a manual pallet jack is that it's relatively cheap. A good manual unit typically costs between $300 and $800, which is significantly less than an electric model. Another advantage of manual pallet jacks is that they are known for lasting longer than electric models, which means the initial cost may be cheaper but could end up costing more in the long run because it will need to be replaced more often. This isn't always the case because there are electric units that are designed to last 15-20 years.

However, manual pallet jacks require manpower, so it ends up being a tradeoff between cost and time spent on working around the warehouse floor.  For example, if a business operates out of a warehouse with multiple floors and many obstructions, an employee could spend most  of his or her time moving around the obstacles to get stock, so an electric pallet jack would be very beneficial.

Both manual and electric units are great for warehouses on any budget. If you have the manpower available to work on warehouse floors, manual units are relatively inexpensive compared to electric units that can cost up to $5000 for some models. When considering which type is best for your warehouses it's important to consider what products you're storing and how they're stored in order to determine what unit will fit your needs best.