Hyster® Cool Truck for Demanding Waste and Recycling Industries

To help tough recycling and waste applications maintain efficiency Hyster® offers a forklift truck specifically designed to prevent the common problem of engines overheating due to dust, dirt and debris.

Known as the “Cool Truck”, this special forklift is based on the Hyster® H4.0-5.5FT range and is packed with features to overcome the difficult environments found throughout recycling and refuse processing operations.

“When operating standard forklift trucks in the waste and recycling industry, the radiators can easily get clogged up causing unnecessary downtime,” says David Reeve, Industry Manager, Counterbalance Solutions for Hyster. “This is not only frustrating, it also costs businesses money in lost production and can lead to other problems.”

With capacities from 4-5.5 tonnes, the Cool Truck has been specially engineered for recycling centres or waste processing plants, where there may be large amounts of debris and dirt in the environment or bales of dusty materials to be transported.

“Firstly, we had to reduce the amount of debris entering the engine compartment and getting stuck on the transmission or in the radiator,” David explains, adding that baling wires can also get trapped and even damage the fins on the radiator fan.

“As a first line of defence, we developed a fully enclosed frame and vented hoods, side panels and radiator covers to reduce the vacuuming of dirt and debris from the floor into the engine compartment,” says David. “But it’s the radiator that is the really clever part.”

Every 20 minutes, the Combi Cooler radiator fan changes direction for 20 seconds, blowing out the unwanted dust collected whilst sucking air in. This keeps the truck running longer, minimises radiator cleanouts and helps the truck to stay cool even in high ambient operating temperatures. Furthermore, the Combi Cooler radiator cools both engine coolant and transmission oil.

The Hyster® Cool Truck also offers an optional Load Weight Display which makes lifting heavy or awkward loads easier, saving time, improving efficiency and increasing reliability for the end user.

“Bales of waste or recycled materials can have non-standard dimensions and weights. If left outside, the bales can also absorb rain water resulting in additional weight,” adds David Reeve. “So to reassure drivers, we have built in load weight indicators.”

Chiselling loads out from tightly packed bales on a vehicle can also cause massive shock loadings to the attachment, mast rollers and carriage. This risks serious damage to the transmission and front end equipment, whilst potentially also overloading the forklift’s engine and cooling system.

The Hyster® Duramatch™ transmission, with its Controlled Power Reversal, reduces shocks through the transmission and helps prolong tyre life, again adding to the dependability and low cost of ownership of these tough trucks.

Furthermore, the hydraulic load accumulator, featured as standard on the Cool Truck, acts as a dampener to the lift truck’s mast, cushioning the load and the attachment, helping to reduce shocks. The rugged front end is designed for use with a wide range of attachments to ensure it can be tailored to suit any application within the recycling or waste industries.

The Cool Truck package has a number of truck modifications, including a rubber guard over the drive axle, brake line guards and ballistic nylon covers for the tilt and steer cylinders. There is a solid belly pan under the engine compartment, heat resistant protection over the turbo, and a high air intake with pre-cleaner.

Premium oil immersed brakes also contribute to reduced maintenance and extended truck dependability, and high temperature hydraulic oil helps improve oil life and maintain lubricity at high temperatures. Load sensing hydraulics pump oil only when it is required, reducing the temperature of hydraulic oil, and reducing fuel consumption, saving money for many businesses.

Further features include powertrain protection, premium monitoring and TouchPoint Mini-Lever options. Optional extras, such as pedestrian awareness lights, automatic indoor speed reduction, and the Hyster Tracker™ fleet management system, are also available to help even tough recycling and waste operations manage their fleet effectively.

“This truck is specifically designed to keep going in these tough applications and this increases the reliability and dependability that both businesses and users need from their equipment,” David concludes.