ASK Nigel Lee of Power Forklifts Limited to demonstrate the capabilities of a Bendi articulated forklift and you will immediately see why these multi-purpose machines are winning converts all over New Zealand. The bright-orange electric Bendis are all about saving money and time – and they’re all about precise control in very confined spaces – as Lee can so ably demonstrate. The Bendi, originally the brainchild of Freddy Brown, chairman of UK company Translift during the early ‘80s, has now been available in New Zealand for around 12 years – and while they’ve been steadily growing in popularity during that time, it’s only in recent years that warehousing businesses have truly realised the better economics that these trucks deliver. Another factor has been the recent availability of refurbished Bendis, which give potential buyers a less expensive option. Essentially, says Lee, the Bendi is three forklifts in one – it is truly multi-functional for both inside and outside work, and can virtually eliminate double handling of goods. For a start it is a VNA (Very Narrow Aisle) forklift that can operate in aisles as narrow as 1.6 metres (pallet face to pallet face). Buy any competitive brand VNA truck new and you’re looking at well into six figures. Second, the Bendi is a reach truck with a top lift of 12.5 metres – it can do everything a standard reach truck can do – and more. If you purchase any brand reach truck nowadays you won’t have much change left over from $65K. And third, it is a counterbalance forklift – to buy one of those new from any supplier, the price would be around $50K. Compare this with the Bendi, which can work in the narrowest of aisles and out on the roughest of yards and you’re getting all three machines for around $98K brand new – or in standard refurbished mode (with 4.7 metre container mast) the price is just $52K. “The refurbished stock comes ex-UK and they are completely stripped down and re-built in our workshop,” says Lee. “The drive train comes with a six month warranty; there is a brand new Douglas battery with five-year manufacturer’s warranty, a new charger with 12-month warranty, as well as new paint, tyres and seat. “With greater availability of used stock from the UK, we think these refurbished forklifts will be the preferred option for many customers. Of course, once they experience the extra speed and the reduced costs that the Bendis represent, they could well opt for new machines down the track.” There’s no doubting the pedigree of the Bendi – it has won numerous design awards, was featured on TV’s “Tomorrow’s World” when first released in 1984, and it won the Queen’s Award for Enterprise (innovation category) in 2003. There are numerous three- and four-wheel model options available, including the four-wheel-drive LPG-powered Series 4 Bendi BG40 with two-tonne capacity, nine-metre lift and two-metre aisle capability – ideal for applications that require a flexible forklift with excellent traction. Lee says the advantages of the Bendi articulated forklift can all be summed up in one word – productivity. In independent tests against two popular makes of reach truck and a turret truck, the Bendi proved to be twice as fast as the reach machines and nearly three times faster than the Turret machine. But where the Bendi really excels is in the use of warehouse space. Lee knows of one freight and logistics company that reduced its aisle widths down to less than two metres and increased its warehouse capacity by 40 percent. In a freezer/chiller situation this would represent even greater savings. In engineering situations delivering rolls of steel or wire to on-floor presses or cutting machinery is easy with a Bendi, says Lee. “You just saddle up to the side of the machine that needs a roll change and articulate the roll onto the machine with absolute precision and ease. No lifting required. Plus with the Bendi all moulds and dies can be stored on pallets into narrow aisles to keep working areas clear of clutter.”•

Enquiries: power@powerforklifts.co.nz