A telehandler or a telescopic handler is a machinery which is well-known within the construction and agriculture industries. These machinery are similar in appearance and function to a forklift or a lift truck but are actually more similar to a crane instead of a forklift. The telehandler offers improved versatility of a single telescopic boom which can extend upwards as well as forwards from the vehicle. The operator can connect different kinds of attachments on the boom's end. Some of the most popular attachments consist of: a muck grab, a bucket, pallet forks or a lift table.
In order to transport loads through areas which are normally not reachable for a standard forklift. The telehandler utilizes pallet forks as their most common attachment. Like for instance, telehandlers could transport loads to and from areas that are not typically accessible by standard forklift units. These devices could also remove palletized loads from inside a trailer and place these loads in high places, like on rooftops for instance. Previously, this abovementioned situation would need a crane. Cranes can be really pricey to use and not always a practical or time-efficient choice.
One more advantage is also the telehandlers biggest drawback: as the boom raises or extends when the equipment is bearing a load, it also acts as a lever and causes the vehicle to become quite unstable, despite the rear counterweights. This translates to the lifting capacity decreasing quickly as the working radius increases. The working radius is the distance between the front of the wheels and the center of the load.
For example, a vehicle which has a 5000 lb. capacity with the boom retracted may be able to safely lift only as heavy as 400 lb. when it is completely extended with a low boom angle. The same unit with a 5000 lb. lift capacity that has the boom retracted may be able to easily support as heavy as 10,000 lb. with the boom raised up to 70.
England first pioneered the telehandler within Horley, Surrey. The Matbro Company developed these machinery from their articulated cross country forestry forklifts. At first, they had a centrally mounted boom design on the front section. This positioned the cab of the driver on the machinery's rear part, as in the Teleram 40 model. The rigid chassis design with the cab situated on the side and a rear mounted boom has since become more famous.