A Bendi articulated forklift working at Leon Jaeggi & Sons.

Catering equipment company Leon Jaeggi & Sons was able to survive a fire that destroyed its warehouse, offices and stock with the help of a Bendi articulated forklift.

In May 2007, teen vandals set fire to the company's 32,000sqft (2,973m²) premises. The company had a disaster recovery plan which included focusing on 20 of its largest customers and restoring normal service in three weeks but it had to move into premises one third of the size of its previous site.

Managing director Leon Jaeggi says the business would have failed if supplies could not be delivered to two of the company's biggest clients several days after the fire. Compounding Jaeggi's worries was his banker's opinion that companies like his had a 4% chance of recovering from a catastrophic fire.

The size of the new warehouse was a problem but a hired Bendi forklift enabled the firm to double the storage space compared to that accessible by counterbalanced forklifts.

Previously, in the old warehouse, two counterbalanced trucks worked in 3.6 metre- (11.8 foot) wide aisles, but the articulating Bendi truck could work in 1.6 metre (5.2 foot) aisles.

The company had also considered a reach truck but changed its mind after the main driver could not fit his long legs comfortably in the vehicle.

The Bendi's ability to load and unload delivery lorries in the yard was also a selling point.

Jaeggi has just replaced the hired Bendi with two new B313 models equipped with side shift and independently moving forks. The forklifts work in 1.9 metre (6.2 foot) aisles, lifting 780kg (1,720lb) up six metres (19.7 feet). The "transfer aisles" are 2.5 metre (8.2 foot) wide.

Jaeggi says the Bendis also had safety benefits: "It is more natural to drive on the basis of where the pallet is rather than where the truck is and you can always see the pallet load when interfacing with the racking beams."

The Bendi also has no rear-end swing like other forklifts and no protruding front wheel legs typical of reach trucks that could damage racking.