Jungheinrich has received a major order for more than 1,000 lithium-ion vehicles

Jungheinrich has received a major order for more than 1,000 lithium-ion vehicles. The manufacturer claims this is the largest order ever awarded for vehicles fitted with lithium-ion batteries anywhere in the world. It is also the largest vehicle order volume in the company's history.

The customer's identity has not been revealed, but Jungheinrich says the "internationally active key account" will employ the vehicles over the coming months in warehouses and shipping centres in Great Britain, France, Italy and Germany.

More than 700 of the 1,000-plus industrial trucks will consist of vertical order pickers designed for use in narrow-aisle warehouses.

Lars Brzoska, member of the Jungheinrich board of management in charge of marketing and sales, describes the order as "a new milestone for electro-mobility (which) underscores Jungheinrich's unrivalled mastery of lithium-ion technology".

Jungheinrich claims to be the world's only manufacturer of industrial trucks to produce its own lithium-ion batteries. Produced at the Jungheinrich plant in Norderstedt, Germany, the batteries are intelligent and can communicate with the vehicle as well as the charging device.

Over the past three years, Jungheinrich has experienced an annual 300% increase in sales of its lithium-ion batteries.

Based on continued strong global demand for this product, the group is planning to considerably expand its manufacturing capacity.