Platform Trucks

Choosing a platform truck

A platform truck is the simplest piece of handling equipment in a workshop and the easiest one to buy badly. It is a deck, four castors and a handle, so the only things that matter are how much it carries, how it steers and how long the welds last.

Capacity is not a marketing number

A 500kg platform truck should carry 500kg spread evenly across the deck, not 500kg stacked over one corner. Work out the heaviest single load you will actually move and add the awkward one you have not thought of yet. Under-specifying capacity is the most expensive mistake here, because an overloaded truck fails at the castor mounts and takes the deck with it.

Deck material

A steel deck is the right answer where loads are sharp, oily, hot or heavy, and where the truck lives outdoors or gets jet washed. A timber deck is kinder to painted and finished goods and quieter in use, which matters more than people expect in an assembly area.

Steering and handles

A fixed and swivel castor arrangement tracks straight down a long aisle and is the better choice for moving stock any distance. All-swivel is better in tight spaces where the truck has to crab sideways. If it is going to be pushed loaded all day, the handle height matters as much as the deck.

Deck size

Size the deck to the load, not to the space. A deck longer than the load lets it slide and a deck shorter than the load lets it overhang, and both are how things end up on the floor.

Built in Britain

All our platform trucks are fully welded from British steel and built to order, so the deck size, material and colour are specified rather than chosen from stock. Sizes outside the standard range are quoted on request.