Crown News

A Key to Longer Life is Routine Maintenance ‒ That Goes for Batteries, Too. In some ways, motive power batteries are a lot like people. Just as sticking to a healthy diet and regular exercise regimen can increase your chances of living longer, following a routine maintenance schedule as prescribed by its manufacturer can prolong the life of your motive power battery.

Your business’s financial success depends on reliable deliveries. And during this global supply chain shortage, that’s harder than ever. As the New York Times reported in a March 6, 2021 article: “All the links in the supply chain are stretched. The ships, the trucks, the warehouses.” (‘I’ve Never Seen Anything Like This’: Chaos Strikes Global Shipping) It’s the perfect storm: Cratering demand in 2020 led to widespread production shutdowns -- and worldwide undersupply of raw materials and finished goods. Commercial driving schools shut down in 2020, worsening the truck driver shortage. Add global shortages of trucks and ships, and it’s clear that we’re in for delays -- especially as demand ramps up. Today, you’ll learn how to protect your supply chain – including 3 weak links and seven questions you must ask your suppliers to make sure you’re covered.

Sustainability is a key buying requirement for many companies, including ours. And more and more companies are asking their suppliers, “Do you have a sustainability program in place? Because energy storage is critical for operating a business, it’s important to hold a spotlight to suppliers’ sustainability efforts... but it’s easy to get bogged down by greenwashing and marketing In the next few minutes, you’ll see how battery sourcing can help you hit your sustainability goals, including which sustainability features to look for.

Every battery requires routine maintenance for maximum performance and life -- including “no-maintenance” AGM and lithium-ion models.

When it comes to material handling, there are three types of motive power to choose from: electric, propane or LP, and diesel. Assuming capacities of each are equal, other factors for determining which forklift is right include run-time considerations ‒ including multi-shift operations ‒ application and use environment. For the purposes of our comparison, we’ll assume indoor use, which in most cases will rule out diesel forklifts due to the need and expense of installing costly emission control accessories and enhanced facility ventilation. So let’s take a look at the pros and cons of our two remaining power sources: electric and propane.