Hyster Forklift

Hyster Forklift Training Burlington - As a global leader in forklift trucks, Hyster consistently strives for superiority in product quality and safety. However, it began as a producer of lifting machinery as well as winches. Most of its production was concentrated in the Pacific Northwest and dealt primarily with the lumber and logging industry. A couple years after the 1st forklift trucks were invented Hyster became synonymous with quality production. Over the preceding 80 years Hyster has continued to get bigger and develop its product line. The expansion of its products coupled with its desire to stay service oriented has allowed Hyster to develop into the global player it is nowadays.

Hyster experienced major innovations through the 1940's and 1960's. In 1946, Hyster opened a plant in Danville, Illinois that was totally committed to bulk manufacturing trucks. This allowed Hyster to drive its costs down and, at the same time, offer a better quality product at industry competitive prices. In 1952, Hyster began its first foray in to the international production market through opening its first plant in the Netherlands. The Netherlands plant was originally designed to produce two products: Hyster 40" and the Karry Kranes.

The ever changing needs of Hyster consumers and Hyster's ability to continue to innovate led to rapid development throughout the 1950's and 60's. They began building container handlers in the US in 1959 to satisfy the ever growing demand for transportation goods. In 1966, Hyster developed a system for allowing a lift truck to go both forward and backwards using the same pedal. This pedal was referred to as the Monotrol pedal, which revolutionized the industry. Later in the decade Hyster opened a R&D centre in Oregon that was focused on improving the design and functionality of forklifts. The centre is still one of the world's greatest testing facilities in the materials handling industry.

As demand for materials handling equipment continued to expand rapidly throughout the 60's, Hyster needed to reorient its focus towards these new mass markets. As a result, in 1970, the XL design philosophy was born. The XL design philosophy allowed Hyster to offer greater quality at a more reasonable cost. A further expansion in manufacturing capabilities was necessitated by the need in Europe for Internal Combustion Engine Trucks. To plug this gap, a plant in Craigavon, Ireland was opened in 1980. Through the 80's Hyster continued to concentrate on developing industry leading forklifts. The Hyster company name was recognized throughout the globe for its dedication towards superiority. This attention to quality produced numerous suitors for the business. In 1989, a large multinational corporation based in Ohio called NACCO Industries bought Hyster and started an aggressive expansion strategy. NACCO swiftly replaced the XL philosophy with a more driver oriented truck that focused on operator comfort, which is recognized as the XM generation of lift trucks.

The evolving requirements of Hyster's clientele, led by changes in supply chain management, required Hyster to continuously innovate and make investments in new production technology during the next few decades. Acquisitions and investments were made in the US, Italy, Netherlands, and numerous other places all over the world. All of these investments have made Hyster a worldwide leader in the forklift market. Recently, Hyster celebrated its eightieth anniversary as an industry leader of materials handling equipment, which consists of over three hundred various versions of forklift trucks.

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