A fuel cell-powered Raymond reach truck being refuelled.

Raymond Corp has unveiled the early findings from its two-year research program on hydrogen fuel cell powered forklifts, developed with funding from the New York Energy Research & Development Authority.

Last January, Raymond converted its Greene, New York, manufacturing site into a "living lab" with hydrogen fuel cell powered Raymond forklifts and an indoor hydrogen refuelling system working in the facility (Forkliftaction.com News #294).

The program's goal is to evaluate the performance of hydrogen fuel in electric forklifts and demonstrate the safety of a hydrogen-fuelled forklift environment.

According to a Raymond statement, the study's early findings show that, compared to battery-powered forklifts, hydrogen fuel cell forklifts maintain comparable performance. The braking distance and maximum travel and lift speeds of the forklift are equivalent to that of an electric forklift, Raymond says.

Raymond says refuelling the fuel cell forklift consumes a few minutes compared to the 20 minutes needed to remove and replace a battery from the same forklift model.

However, the battery in electric forklifts contributes to the counterweight. Raymond says extra weight must be added to the fuel cell unit and the weight distributed within the fuel cell system so the centre of the gravity is the same as that of the battery.

Raymond is also testing:

• Hydrogen consumption and frequency of refuelling,
• Operation of the hydrogen infrastructure and refuelling,
• Reliability, maintenance and repairability of the fuel cell systems, and
• Voltage delivered and how it compares with specifications for all the electrical components and options on a forklift.

Steve Medwin, Raymond's advanced research manager, says the forklift manufacturer will disclose further results of the research when they become available.