Counterbalance lift trucks are essentially forklifts that are engineered with counterweight at the back of the machinery. The counterweight works to balance the weight that the forks are carrying at the front of the load. This design is engineered to stabilize traditional lift trucks. As far as electric counterbalance lift trucks are concerned, the counterweight is formed by the battery itself.

Practically every lift truck manufacturer will have in their product range, a counterbalance lift truck. These machines will come in a wide range of fuel sources, configurations, and sizes. These lift trucks can with solid or pneumatic tires. They are capable of working in diverse applications. These lift trucks are outfitted with various kinds of accessories. Common attachments and options include: hydraulic clamps, side shifts, slip sheet attachments and fork shifts just to name a few.

Counterbalance lift trucks have revolutionized the material handling business. They have become the cornerstone of storage and distribution systems where they perform loading, stacking, unloading and horizontal transport functions. The average warehouse forklifts are typically used for lift heights less than 20 feet or 6 meters. There have been some units recently developed which are capable of lifting to heights 9.5 meters or 31 feet. The smaller 4000 lbs. or 1-1.8 ton forklifts are the main workhorses within the majority of warehouses. These are the most common units that most small companies will have. The typical warehouse counterbalance forklift is really a wide-aisle truck which requires about 3 meters or 11 feet to turn in.

Counterbalance forklifts are not necessarily limited to the warehouse. They are normally used for heavy use and container carrying together with pretty much every application in between. Counterbalance lift trucks are the most versatile and widely utilized of all materials handling equipment.

Because of their versatility and durability, counterbalance forklifts are commonplace in a huge array of working environments, including production, retail and warehousing. Some of the industrial use include: timber, automotive, chemical and food businesses.