Big Lift, which bought the Big Joe forklift brand in 2009, has expanded with the acquisition of materials handling equipment provider ePicker.

Big Lift, the North American subsidiary of EP Equipment, says it will rebrand the Fort Worth, Texas-based ePicker as EP to capitalise on its parent company's global brand reputation.

The North American EP brand will retain the ePicker leadership team.

“This acquisition is an important part of Big Lift’s strategy to become the market leader in lithium-powered material handling solutions and, specifically, the industry leader in lithium forklifts in North America," says Big Lift president Dan Rosskamm.

The Big Joe and EP brands will be distributed through their current sales channels while focusing on different product segments.

The Big Joe channel will continue to focus on innovative niche products and in-between-handling applications while the EP channel will primarily focus on purpose-built lithium-ion forklifts.

Both brands will offer market-leading autonomous solutions.

“The addition of the ePicker team and ePicker forklift distributors will benefit both channels as it will enable Big Lift to dramatically increase our resource base, significantly strengthen our aftermarket support capabilities and ensure we continue to launch high-quality, innovative products,” says Rosskamm.