Skip to content
Search AI Powered
Human content, AI powered search.

Latest Stories

Age before beauty

Annual forklift competition picks winners based on longevity, not appearance.

1978 vintage Toyota forklift
Photo courtesy of Toyota
DC Velocity Staff
By DC Velocity StaffDec 09, 2024
DC Velocity Staff
See Full Bio

As the workhorse of the warehouse, the forklift typically gets all the tough jobs and none of the limelight. That finally changed recently, when a 46-year-old truck made headlines by winning the “Oldest Toyota Forklift Contest.”

The contest was organized by Intella Parts LLC, a Holland, Michigan-based supplier of aftermarket forklift parts for Toyota as well as other brands like Yale, Taylor, CAT, and Hyster lift trucks. This year’s winner was a 1978-vintage Toyota 42-3FGC20, a gas-powered forklift built in Toyota’s factory in Takahama-shi, Aichi, Japan. Alexander Toolsie of Burlington, Ontario, submitted the winning entry and was awarded a $100 gift certificate for Toyota forklift parts at Intella and a $100 Visa gift card.

The competition follows a similar contest held last year, when Intella launched a search for the oldest running Hyster forklift. The winner was a 1945 Hyster model that’s still in use at Public Steel in Amarillo, Texas.

According to Intella, the contests have been so popular that it plans to expand the competition to additional forklift brands next year.
Material HandlingInternal MovementArticleEditorial
material handlinglift truckstoyota material handlingintella parts llcpublic steel
Material HandlingInternal MovementArticleEditorial
material handlinglift truckstoyota material handlingintella parts llcpublic steel

The Latest

worker operating toyota forklift in warehouse
Lift Trucks, Personnel & Burden Carriers

Toyota Material Handling and The Raymond Corporation to merge

person holding smartphone with freightcenter app for tracking shipments
Transportation 3PL

3PL BlueGrace Logistics acquires FreightCenter

worker using sensors on rooftop infrastructure
Green Logistics

Sick and Endress+Hauser say joint venture will enable decarbonization

noblelift forklift trucks
Lift Trucks, Personnel & Burden Carriers

Noblelift North America names Pedriana as president

More Stories

chart of material handling sector results for december

Material handling sector turned in mixed results for December

An economic activity index for the material handling sector showed mixed results in December, following strong reports in October and November, according to a release from business forecasting firm Prestige Economics.

Specifically, the most recent version of the MHI Business Activity Index (BAI) showed December contractions in the areas of capacity utilization, shipments, unfilled orders, inventories, and exports. But on the upside, there were expansions in business activity, new orders, and future new orders.

Keep ReadingShow less
a collage of bioelements packaging
Photo courtesy of Bioelements Group

Composting isn’t just for food waste anymore

The next time you buy a loaf of bread or a pack of paper towels, take a moment to consider the future that awaits the plastic it’s wrapped in. That future isn’t pretty: Given that most conventional plastics take up to 400 years to decompose, in all likelihood, that plastic will spend the next several centuries rotting in a landfill somewhere.

But a Santiago, Chile-based company called Bioelements Group says it has developed a more planet-friendly alternative. The firm, which specializes in biobased, biodegradable, and compostable packaging, says its Bio E-8i film can be broken down by fungi and other microorganisms in just three to 20 months. It adds that the film, which it describes as “durable and attractive,” complies with the regulations of each country in which Bioelements currently operates.

Keep ReadingShow less
a women in an office watching a delivery of boxes

How green is your glue?

If you’re looking to make the packaging process more eco-friendly, the obvious place to start is with the box itself. And that’s exactly what Salt Lake City-based Packsize did when it made its initial foray into sustainable packaging back in 2002. That year, the company launched its first product, an innovative on-demand packaging system designed to reduce cardboard waste (and the need for filler material) by creating a right-sized box for each shipment.

Now the company is ready for the next step: greening up the glue.

Keep ReadingShow less
humanoid robot carrying box in warehouse

Humanoid robot maker Apptronik teams with Google

The humanoid robot manufacturer Apptronik on Thursday said it has partnered with Google to accelerate the advancement of its AI-powered robots and make them more helpful to people in dynamic environments.

The deal will add the Google DeepMind robotics team’s AI expertise to Austin, Texas-based Apptronik’s robotics platform, allowing the units to handle a wider range of tasks in real-world settings like factories and warehouses.

Keep ReadingShow less
David Scheffrahn of Ocado Intelligent Automation

InPerson interview: David Scheffrahn of Ocado Intelligent Automation

David Scheffrahn is the North American vice president of sales at Ocado Intelligent Automation, a part of the technology specialist Ocado Group. Although he began his career focusing on robotic solutions for semiconductor, electronics, and automotive manufacturers, Scheffrahn eventually moved on to the logistics sector, where he worked at Rethink Robotics, Seegrid, Plus One Robotics, and Dexterity before joining Ocado in 2023. He holds a degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Texas.

Q: How would you describe the current state of the automation industry?

Keep ReadingShow less
Copyright ©2025.