The custom-built truck has a lifting height of 400 mm and operates via an electronic steering device

PTB Special Equipment has built a 15 T electric pallet truck to handle Mercedes Benz injection moulds in Germany.

Company spokesman Martijn van Houten tells Forkliftaction.com News that PTB develops machines for applications where standard machinery "can't meet the requirements and wishes of users. We build only custom machines."

The heavy-duty pallet truck has a lifting height of 400 mm (15 in.) and operates via an electronic steering device. According to PTB, compared to a standard 15 T forklift, the pallet truck is "very compact and highly manoeuvrable". Operating space is minimised with the use of the truck, allowing more storage space for the warehouse.

"In this case, a standard forklift was really too big," Van Houten explains, adding that the total length of the machine is half of that of a standard forklift.

"Depending on the selected features and options, the price [of the truck] varies between EUR50,000 to EUR75,000 (USD67,089 to USD100,634)," says Van Houten.

Headquartered in Groningen, The Netherlands, PTB had its beginnings in 1897 as a steam-powered forging company specialising in agricultural machinery. Today, the company employs about 40 people, and about 25% of its custom-built lifting and transport machines are headed for the export market and that percentage is expected to rise in the future.