How Do Forklift Power Solutions Improve Operational Efficiency?

Last Updated on December 16, 2025 by Admin

To maximize the lifespan of your equipment while minimizing downtime, you should optimize your lift truck fleet’s performance. The battery is the beating heart of all electrical equipment, so it takes priority. With tailored forklift power solutions, you can preserve battery life, accelerate charging and increase uptime, but how?

Why Industrial Operations Need Forklift Power Management

Manufacturers, distributors, construction companies, warehouses and retailers have something in common — they all use forklifts to load, stack, unload and move pallets. Regardless of the application, these machines are integral to operational efficiency.

Electric lift trucks have become a hot commodity in industrial sectors because they operate quietly and produce no exhaust fumes. Compared to internal combustion engine equipment, they have a low total cost of ownership, as battery-powered machines have fewer moving parts, simplifying maintenance.

The main drawback is that conventional charging can be time-consuming. If you accidentally run out of fuel, you can quickly refuel using a gas canister. However, if you use battery-powered machines, you must swap batteries or park in a charging station for several hours. Since unexpected downtime is costly, energy management is crucial.

How Forklift Power Solutions Improve Operational Efficiency

Forklift performance heavily depends on effective power management. Even the best equipment in the industry provides substandard efficiency if the energy source is unreliable or too weak. Consistent output directly affects uptime, productivity and operational expenses. The longer lift trucks can operate on a single charge, the lower your downtime rate will be.

Conventional charging is the most common charging method, especially for lead-acid batteries. It allows you to recharge after a total or partial discharge and typically takes several hours, followed by an appropriate cooldown period. On the other hand, lithium-ion batteries are capable of fast charging, also known as opportunity charging.

You can opportunity-charge an electric forklift in as little as 5 to 15 minutes — during work breaks, shift changes or scheduled lunches — or fully charge it within two hours. Strategic charging can significantly improve operational efficiency. You can achieve shorter recharge breaks without adversely affecting battery capacity. 

The Benefits of Working With a Power Solutions Provider

A solutions provider can develop, integrate and maintain electrical systems for material handling applications. When conducting a power study — a comprehensive analysis of electrical system performance — they may consider facility demands, infrastructure compatibility, current charging practices, battery swapping frequency and maintenance schedules.

This study leverages data to reveal operational inefficiencies and areas of opportunity. Professionals collect equipment utilization details to gain insight into battery capacity, energy usage and charging capabilities. Whether you want to identify strategic charger placements or facilitate remote battery monitoring, this information can help. In addition, you can source recommendations, preventive maintenance plans and technical training from service providers.

As a result, you can right-size your fleet’s batteries, evolve your charging strategy and establish best practices. For example, you can implement a first-in, first-out rotation for battery swapping to optimize capacities.

Improving power storage, utilization and management systems helps you get more runs per shift and reduce turnaround times. By improving performance and mitigating unexpected downtime, you can optimize labor, increase employee retention and reduce operational costs.

Best Forklift Power and Energy Storage Solution Providers

While adopting electric forklifts is generally beneficial, working with one of the top 10 providers to develop a tailored power and energy storage solution can dramatically increase your operational efficiency.

1. Concentric LLC

As the nation’s largest forklift power solutions provider, Concentric is the only company that offers full-lifecycle lift truck power and electricity storage solutions nationwide. Since its founding in 2000, it has found that most facilities have highly reactive energy and maintenance systems. It has seen $4,000 in hidden expenses per truck, which is equivalent to up to $125,000 in lost revenue.

Concentric designs, integrates and manages power systems for hundreds of facilities. Its process starts with a free power study. From there, its experts conduct a detailed cost analysis, analyze customer equipment specifications and calculate the return on investment. As a brand-independent service provider, its expertise covers a broad range of equipment brands.

Its GuaranteedPOWER® service helps you optimize your fleet by modernizing your motive energy management approach. You can reduce costs by 30% while aligning your electricity systems with your supply chain strategy. 

2. Swift Industrial Power Inc.

Founded in 1965, Swift Industrial Power provides products and services for material handling, reserve and wireless power applications. It has grown from a single office in East Tennessee to a large organization with seven locations across the southeastern United States. Today, it is a full-service supplier of electric forklift batteries and chargers for fleets of all sizes.

It works directly with customers to identify the most effective way to power fleets. In addition to right-sizing products, it plans routine and scheduled maintenance. As an ISO 9001:2015 certified enterprise, it takes quality management extremely seriously.

One of its success stories involves the world’s fifth-largest family-owned automotive supplier. It significantly improved the electric fleet’s amp-hour capacity, helping this customer achieve longer-than-ever run times.

3. EnerSys

EnerSys® provides products and services for industrial and critical power applications, including material handling. It serves over 10,000 customers in 100 countries and handles batteries, charging systems, fleet monitoring software, maintenance services and technical support. This brand even uninstalls and disposes of existing energy components in accordance with state and federal regulations. You receive documentation — including recycling certificates — to fulfill compliance requirements. 

The team works with you to track equipment power usage, develop operating profiles and identify a management solution that meets your operational requirements. They can compare battery and charger combinations, predict application performance, forecast the total cost of ownership, and estimate greenhouse gas reductions.

They helped one wholesale food distributor achieve 3.94% annual total cost of ownership savings by eliminating the need for watering and weekly equalization charging. By their estimate, the customer will save $19,357 over the next five years.

4. Hawker Powersource Inc.

Hawker® is a manufacturer that delivers custom motive battery and charging systems for Class I, II and III trucks designed by its in-house research and development engineers. Its portfolio is among the broadest in the industry, comprising lithium-ion, thin plate pure lead and flooded lead-acid batteries in addition to modular chargers and data management tools.

This Tennessee-based business has over 75 authorized sales and service centers, so it serves the entire North American Market, including the U.S., Mexico, Canada and the Caribbean. A local representative can help you determine which products best suit your application. Post-implementation, you can receive technical support from in-house experts.

Its Harness the Power™ assessment analyzes your fleet’s size, run times, lift needs, utilization level and maintenance needs. Account professionals conduct this on-site assessment in person to ensure the engineers can develop a tailored, cost-effective system that meets your budget and application requirements.

5. Viking Power 

Texas-based Viking Power works with you from planning to implementation to help you maximize forklift uptime. It carries a broad range of stationary energy, motive power, remote monitoring and telematics products backed by preventive maintenance programs. It can even provide grid-scale electricity storage in off-grid settings.

This partner has full-service lines of forklift batteries and chargers that support your day-to-day work, helping you keep critical equipment running through one, two, and three-shift scenarios. It goes beyond providing electrical components by delivering tailored energy solutions.

6. Abel Womack 

Abel Womack offers free power studies to help identify inefficiencies and expenses hidden in your facility’s power systems. If it finds problems, it can provide the solutions. There is a wide range of smart chargers and batteries, including lead-acid, hydrogen fuel cells, lithium-ion and thin plate pure lead, and the staff recommend deliverables tailored to your operation.

This business can help you maximize performance and uptime, whether you run an entire fleet or a single forklift. Since it employs 150 certified repair technicians and 20 response personnel, its average response time is 2.1 hours, and it has a first-time completion ratio of almost 90%.

As an authorized Raymond® dealer, Abel Womack carries Raymond’s full energy solutions portfolio. The lithium-ion batteries — which are explicitly designed for Raymond lift trucks — are engineered and made in America. They have a lifetime return on investment of up to 656%, with a 100% return within 10 to 16 months. This entity also sells and services a broad range of other equipment.

7. Omnilift 

The full-service dealership Omnilift started with a small team and a single service van in 1976. Since then, it has opened several new branches and hired 50 factory-trained field service technicians. It primarily serves warehouses.

As an authorized dealer for Komatsu and Crown products, this option can sell and rent new and used brand-name equipment. Beyond that, it sells batteries, chargers and accessories to deliver highly integrated forklift energy solutions. Offerings include lead-acid, lithium-ion, starter and deep cycle batteries. It also sells cables, connectors, sensors, shrouds and charger stands.

Although Omnilift may not conduct power studies and design tailored electrical systems, it has a broad range of products and custom service agreements. Since each service van carries almost $10,000 in replacement parts and the team responds within two to four hours, it offers exceptional emergency support.

8. Exponential Power

Exponential Power has been in the stored energy solutions business since 1915. It assembles stationary and motive power products for the industrial, utilities, telecommunications and data center sectors. Services include turnkey installation, preventive maintenance, technical training and battery recycling, which simplify setup and compliance.

All its products are designed to operate in the most demanding industrial environments. They also come with comprehensive warranties for peace of mind. 

The batteries cover a broad range of sizes, capacities and standards. Low-maintenance, wet cell and maintenance-free configurations of flat plate and tubular types are available. Exponential Power’s battery handling equipment ranges from forklift charger stands to lifting accessories to man-aboard changing systems. 

9. Andersen Material Handling

Andersen Material Handling is a materials-handling company that specializes in storage systems, warehouse products and utility vehicles. Although it may not be a power solutions provider, it possesses in-depth knowledge of forklifts and warehouse operations. Rather than simply selling components, it works with you to deliver a tailored integrated solution.

If you need to repair or replace a component, it can help, regardless of the part, lift or time. It stocks over $3 million in forklift parts, including factory-authorized components from all major original equipment manufacturers. The inventory comprises over 300,000 part numbers spanning 2,500 models.

In an emergency, certified technicians respond fast — they have a 30-minute callback guarantee and will arrive on-site within four hours. Since they have completed 40 hours of mandatory training and arrive with a fully equipped field service vehicle, you know you can trust them. You can increase your lift truck’s battery life by up to 25% with proper maintenance. 

10. Brauer Material Handling

Brauer Material Handling has batteries, industrial chargers and battery handling systems for forklifts and pallet jacks backed by comprehensive manufacturers’ warranties and industry-leading support. It designs and deploys integrated setups to enhance floor space utilization and improve workplace ergonomics at the lowest total operational cost possible.

Since this brand is a part of the Raymond® Solutions and Support Center network, it has access to over 100 strategically located facilities across North America. This way, it can satisfy any systems integration requirement you have, regardless of your location.

Beyond providing power products, the employees offer watering, washing, training, troubleshooting and on-site repairs. A dedicated customer service representative can assist with on-site diagnostics, maintenance, repairs and reporting around the clock, even on the weekends and holidays.

How Do The Top 10 Power Solution Providers Differ?

The top 10 power and energy storage solution providers employ different methodologies and technologies, but they share a common mission — to optimize your electricity consumption and enhance truck fleet uptime. To decide which best suits your need, you should consider their service area, years of experience and emergency service capabilities. These details are essential for applications where uptime is critical.

Choosing Between the Best Motive Power Solution Providers

If your fleet is electric, you are likely incurring significant hidden expenses from energy inefficiencies. With forklift power solutions, you can reduce the need for charging breaks, preserve the battery capacity of lift trucks and enhance operational efficiency. While the up front cost may be significant, case studies show a positive return on investment is all but guaranteed.

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