Counterbalance Forklift training in Nottingham

About counterbalance forklifts

Ask anyone to draw a forklift and they will draw a counterbalance. It is the most common lift truck in Nottinghamshire by a long way, found everywhere from the breweries and bakeries of Nottingham to the distribution parks around Mansfield and Worksop. The design is simple: a mast and forks at the front, and a block of dense ballast behind the rear axle that stops the truck tipping when the forks are loaded. With nothing sticking out in front of the load, the operator can drive squarely up to a lorry bed, a pallet stack or a run of racking.

You will meet two layouts. Three-wheel electric trucks have a single or close-coupled pair of drive wheels at the rear and pivot almost on the spot, which suits tighter indoor aisles. Four-wheel trucks, usually diesel or LPG, are heavier, more stable and better on rough yards and wet concrete. Masts are duplex (two stage) or triplex (three stage), with "free lift" on some models so the forks can rise inside a container before the mast starts to extend.

The skills that matter are the same whichever truck you run: understanding the stability triangle and the load centre printed on the capacity plate, keeping the load back against the fork heels, travelling low with the mast tilted back, and reversing when the load blocks the view ahead. Attachments such as side-shift, fork positioners and clamps are covered where your truck has them.

What the course covers

• Legislation, employer and operator responsibilities
• Pre-use inspection and defect reporting
• Stability triangle, load centres and reading the capacity plate
• Manoeuvring in confined spaces, forward and reverse, with and without load
• Stacking and de-stacking at height in racking and block stacks
• Loading and unloading vehicles, ramps and loading docks
• Refuelling or battery charging, safe parking and shutdown

On site, on your truck, anywhere in Nottinghamshire

We bring an accredited instructor to your premises in Nottingham or any town in Nottinghamshire. You provide the truck and a safe working area; we provide the theory material, test papers and the HSE-recognised certificate. Novice Forklift Training, Semi-Experienced Forklift Training, Refresher Forklift Training, Conversion Forklift Training are all available for this truck.

Other truck categories

Reach Truck, Double Deep Reach Truck, 4-Way (Multi-Directional) Reach Truck, VNA Truck (Man-Up and Man-Down), Bendi and Flexi (Articulated) Forklift, Pivot Steer Truck, Powered Pallet Truck, Pedestrian Stacker Truck, Telehandler (Telescopic Handler), Order Picker (Low, Medium and High Level), Rough Terrain (Masted) Counterbalance, Side Loader.