The Right Equipment for the Right Job

Force has a huge range of specialty lifts for hire, and picking the one that’s ideal for what you need done can be a little daunting. Here’s a quick guide.

Boom lifts

Our Boom lifts can reach heights up to 43 metres. Also called ‘cherry pickers’ because of their early use by fruit tree harvesters, boom lifts are good for much more than agriculture. They are widely used by cable TV, telephone and electricity companies to work on utility poles. Arborists and window cleaners also use them for a variety of jobs.

Maybe the most outlandish job done by a boom lift happened in 2012 in the UK. The Mayor of London teamed up with the British Fashion Council to put a hat on the statue of Horatio Nelson in Trafalgar Square. A boom lift was used to lift a workman the 52 metres required to carry the light-hearted headwear to the top of the iconic column.

Machines for tighter spaces

Trafalgar Square and fruit orchards offer the boom operator some space. If you have to do a job in a tighter place, the answer is a knuckle boom. The boom is articulated with two ‘knuckles’ that can be bent like fingers. Knuckle booms are also great for moving around obstructions to get to the work area; they are often used to repair high rise buildings.

Indoor work and simple lifting

For work indoors, a scissor lift is often the right choice. These machines only lift vertically, the platform is supported by hinged struts in a criss-cross pattern, and the struts pull in and up to lift the work platform. They are very stable and extremely versatile. The platform can be held at any number of exact heights.

Scissor lifts also have large platforms, allowing a worker to take tools or boxes up on the lift. That’s not the case with vertical lifts. Very compact with a small platform, vertical lifts are also known as man-lifts. Some units can be pushed around a shop floor, while others are drivable. They are great for indoor work in tight spaces.

Moving Heavy Materials and Stock

Telescopic handlers, or telehandlers, actually look and function more like fork lifts than booms, but they can do things no fork lift can do. They’re not for lifting workers; they’re for lifting materials. They are most effectively used to load and unload high-sided trailers or hoppers that a forklift can’t reach, or to lift materials to height on worksites.

Telehandlers come with computer controls, because the greater the extension of the boom, the greater the chances of the machine tipping. The computers will warn of instability. Telehandlers are used in both indoor and outdoor settings; some are suitable for worksites and very rugged terrain applications.

These are just some general guidelines. Any of our staff can give you more guidance into the machine that is ideal for your job.