Established in 2003, Higgidy is now a household name for lovers of savoury snacks. The company’s three warehouses in Shoreham-by-Sea are packed full of raw ingredients which are transformed in nearby kitchens into its ever growing range of baked products. To ensure efficient materials handling and space saving storage, Higgidy is using two Aisle Master articulated forklifts which work in the ambient, chilled and cold store areas and in the packaging stores.

The main reason for the choice of these trucks was their ability to “do everything” as Logistics Manager Dean Parsons explains. “Our previous equipment was very limited in where it could operate, whereas the Aisle Masters can go everywhere, offload outside and bring goods directly to their designated storage, so we have a much higher degree of versatility.”

Making the most of available space was also solved thanks to the Aisle Master’s ability to work in narrow aisles and confined areas. John Kelley of materials handling consultants Mexmast worked with Dean on the configuration and installation of double deep storage in the packaging warehouse, which has doubled its previous capacity.

The constant transition between -22° C in the cold store, +3° C in the chilled section through to ambient is a challenge for any equipment but cold store Aisle Master models cope with these fluctuations with no adverse effect on performance. They are fitted with anti-mist glass on the top, front and rear windscreens and the powerful 930 Ah batteries counteract any possibility of battery draining in extreme cold.

The 2t capacity trucks have other features designed to Higgidy’s specific requirements such as triple telescopic forks, which enable them to manoeuvre around the tight corners in the cold store but also easily access pallets in the double deep racking. The rear width of 1420mm offers excellent stability when lifting 800kg pallets of frozen goods to the top bay of 3.6m.

The Aisle Masters have proved to do just what they promised and will two more will replace old counterbalance forklifts in due course. “There are a lot of benefits from using just one type of truck, particularly one that has the capacity to do so much and work long hours on just one battery charge,” said Dean. “Mexmast couldn’t have looked after us better, so it’s been a recipe for success.”

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