Narrow Aisle Ltd has announced that remanufactured machines in its Flexi ECO AC range of ‘second life’ articulated reach trucks are now offered with the same factory warranty terms as new-build Flexi units.
“Demand for articulated VNA equipment is growing and, as more companies opt to supplement their materials handling fleets with Flexi VNA units, rebuilt trucks offer a highly cost efficient proposition,” says John Maguire, managing director of Narrow Aisle Ltd.
He continues: “Our Flexi ECO AC trucks come with an identical warranty to an equivalent all-new model but cost some 30 per cent less. ‘Second life’ Flexis are proving a particularly popular option for users who acquire materials handling equipment on contract hire packages where all repair and maintenance costs are included in the fixed term, monthly charge.”
Flexi ECO AC trucks feature all new component parts – only the truck chassis, four counterweights and heavy fabrications are re-used – and these components are ND tested and finished to the highest standards at Flexi’s UK manufacturing plant in the MIdlands.
Used Flexi’s that are selected to undergo the ECO AC ‘makeover’ process are completely stripped down. All the original major direct components are graded and either disposed of or reworked for onward sale to the service exchange spare parts market.
Once passed fit for re-use, the cast and steel body parts are cleaned and finished before joining the Flexi production line, where all-new componentry – including pumps, motors, all hydraulic parts and the latest Zapi AC motor technology – is introduced.
John Maguire says: “Some 80 per cent of all materials handling equipment operating in the UK is contract hired for a fixed period. This means that there is a constant flow of used end-of-contract equipment returning to distributors and dealers. These products are then added to rental fleets or sold on as used trucks to an end customer, often with lower utilisation levels, and in due course the trucks reach end of their economic life.
“The Flexi product is very different. Our trucks are built with heavy gauge steel plate, ‘I-beams’ and four cast counterweights. This means that even after 10 years of hard use the heavy chassis components are able to be reconditioned to the latest specification. This process saves a great deal of primary and secondary manufacturing costs, which, in turn, dramatically cuts the amount of CO² generated during the total manufacturing process.
“Articulated truck users can take advantage of the large reduction in carbon emissions that results from the Flexi ECO AC rebuild process, while, of course, the significant cost savings that rebuilt machines offer over new models is an added bonus.”
Flexi Narrow Aisle developed the Flexi articulated reach truck in 1990, since which time many thousands of units have been sold throughout the world to customers operating pallet storage facilities in hugely diverse industries.
With their ability to operate in aisleways as narrow as 1.6 meters, articulate to 220 degrees and lift pallet loads up to heights of over 14 meters, Flexis can save warehouse operators at least 30 per cent of their storage costs. Furthermore, the ability to unload pallets from road vehicles or marshalling areas and deliver loads directly to the VNA storage racks can reduce double handling costs by a further 50 per cent.
www.flexi.co.uk
