THE SHORT ANSWER
Before a new warehouse opens, four forklift decisions need locking: charging power at the right location (three-phase outlets near parking bays, ordered months ahead), mast height matched to the top beam with residual capacity verified, full free lift if containers are destuffed, and a hire-first equipment strategy so month-one cash goes to stock and staff rather than depreciating assets.
The pattern we keep seeing
New sites in Truganina, Derrimut and Dandenong South open in the same sequence: lease signed, racking ordered, staff hired — and the forklift conversation starts two weeks before go-live, when every choice is now constrained by what the building already is. This checklist runs the decisions in the order that keeps them cheap.
1. Power, before the electrician leaves site
The single most expensive forklift mistake in a fit-out is discovering after handover that charging needs power where there isn’t any.
- Three-phase outlets near where machines will actually park overnight — not just at the switchboard. The 60A and 100A chargers on larger lithium machines need them.
- A 15A single-phase outlet is the fallback: it runs the built-in charger on a 1.8 t class machine and costs an electrician’s hour, not a switchboard upgrade.
- While the electrician is still on site, extra outlets are trivial. Afterwards, they’re a project. Run the Charging Readiness check against your layout before the electrical scope closes.
2. Racking and mast agree with each other — in writing
Racking height gets decided by the racking vendor; mast height by whoever picks the forklift. When nobody reconciles them:
- The mast must reach the top beam with usable residual capacity — rated capacity at ground level is irrelevant up there (how to read the plate).
- Lowered mast height must clear doorways and any mezzanine. A container-capable machine that can’t pass the battery room door is a real story we’ve heard more than once.
- If containers will be destuffed on the dock, that’s a full-free-lift mast requirement decided on day one, not retrofit later — why FFL matters.
3. The month-one equipment trap
A new site’s cash has better uses than a depreciating machine bought before throughput is known:
- Volumes are a guess until the site has run a quarter. Hire lets the machine change when the guess is wrong — up-size, add an FFL unit, add a second machine seasonally.
- Capex approval for a $40–60k purchase is slower than opex signoff for a weekly rate in most businesses. From-rates for our five-model lithium fleet sit at $175–235/week ex GST on 36-month terms — current pricing.
- Maintenance, breakdown response and compliance records come bundled in the hire agreement, which matters when the site doesn’t yet have a maintenance routine of its own — what’s included.
The honest counter-case: a stable, known duty cycle over 5+ years can favour ownership — our hire vs buy analysis runs both sides with real numbers.
4. The week-zero admin most sites forget
- Operator licences: every operator needs an LF-class high-risk work licence — Victorian licence guide. Check expiry dates before rostering.
- Daily pre-start checks are an OHS obligation from the first shift; the routine takes three minutes once it’s a habit — checklist here.
- Traffic management: pedestrian exclusion zones and dock rules are far easier to paint before the racking fills.
The two-call version
If the fit-out is already moving, the fast path is one call with your racking drawing and power plan (we flag conflicts while they’re still cheap to fix), then a written quote with delivery timed to your go-live — start here. Freight is a one-off charge, itemised, and machines arrive commissioned with plates matching the delivered configuration.