Forklift Rental in Passau: On-Site Check in Five Points

Rent forklifts in Passau from 53 models with 1,200 to 33,000 kg capacity and lift heights up to 6.07 m. They are in demand in warehouses and workshops, at the Racklau and Schalding port sites, on construction sites and in businesses in the old town. Passau is also a university city and a destination for many river cruises, so delivery traffic and storage areas are correspondingly varied. The data sheet, however, says little about whether a forklift fits through your gate, whether the hall floor can carry it or whether it can climb the ramp. This is exactly where many jobs fail. That is why this page guides you through a five-point on-site check before you choose a model. All machines for the city are shown on Construction machinery rental in Passau, the complete fleet in the Forklifts category. Delivery is by low-loader from our Passau site.

The rental fleet is divided into six types. Which of them suits you follows from the five check points in the following sections.

The rough-terrain forklifts are the Manitou M30-4 and M50-4 as well as the Ausa C300H and C500H x4.

It is best to go through the five points with a folding rule and notepad directly at the job site. Photos of the gate, floor and ramp help us assess your information. This way you avoid having a machine delivered that lifts the load but does not fit into the hall.

First measure the width and height of every opening the forklift has to pass through. What counts is the overall height of the lowered mast, not the lift height.

Old town and older buildings

After the city fire of 1662, Passau's old town was rebuilt in Baroque style, with narrow passages and low entrances. Shops, restaurants and storerooms in these buildings are often supplied via narrow courtyard entrances. Often only pallet stackers with 1,200 to 2,000 kg or small electric forklifts fit in there.

Hall gates in commercial premises

Even in new halls, roller doors and sprinkler pipes limit the height. Give us the smallest dimension along the route so that the mast and overhead guard fit. Also think of doors between warehouse and production and of passages under conveyor belts or pipelines.

A loaded forklift presses its own weight plus the load onto a few wheel contact areas. Hall floors, basement ceilings and dock levellers must absorb this point load.

Heavy single loads

For machines and steel parts, seven heavy-duty forklifts with 8,000 to 33,000 kg are available. The most powerful is the Kalmar DCG 330-12T with 33,000 kg. With these loads, a structural engineer should approve the routes.

Riverside areas after floods

Passau lies on the Danube, Inn and Ilz; in 2013 the Danube rose to 12.89 m. On waterlogged or unpaved ground, the rough-terrain forklifts with 3,000 to 5,000 kg operate more safely than machines with indoor tyres.

Basement ceilings and dock levellers

In older buildings there are often vaults or cellars beneath the yard and ground floor. Clarify their permissible load before a forklift drives over them. For dock levellers and bridge plates, the load capacity is usually shown on a plate on the component. Always calculate with the total weight of forklift, driver and load, not just the pallet.

Between the river valleys and heights such as the Georgsberg with the Veste Oberhaus or the Mariahilfberg above the Innstadt, Passau has many sloping yards and access roads. Every gradient changes the forklift's stability.

Keep the load uphill

When loaded, the forklift travels with the load facing uphill, i.e. forwards uphill and backwards downhill. Turning on a slope must be avoided. The permissible gradient is stated in the operating manual.

Ramps at the loading dock

For dock levellers and ramps, sufficient ground clearance is important. Diesel and rough-terrain forklifts usually have the advantage over pallet stackers here.

Measure the gradient of your steepest access, for example with an inclinometer app or from the height difference and length. If the yard is wet, icy or covered with grit, traction deteriorates significantly. Pneumatic tyres, a slow speed and a smaller load then help.

Determine the highest storage level and the weight of the heaviest pallet up there. As lift height increases, residual capacity decreases; the load chart on the machine shows the values.

The greatest lift height in the rental fleet is reached by the Hyundai 80D-9 with 6.07 m. Electric forklifts lift up to 6.00 m, LPG forklifts up to 6.03 m. For narrow racking aisles, pallet stackers with 2.70 to 5.50 m are suitable.

Aisle width and turning

For storing and retrieving, the forklift must stand at right angles to the racking in the aisle. The required working aisle width depends on the type, pallet size and fork length. Measure the narrowest point between the racks and also note the pallet formats stored there.

Long and bulky goods

Pipes, profiles or panels protrude sideways beyond the forks. For such goods, a wider fork spread or longer forks are needed, and residual capacity drops further.

If the load has to go higher than 6.07 m or over an edge, a telehandler is the right machine.

The job site determines the drive type. In halls with staff, electric forklifts are the rule, as they produce zero local emissions during operation. 22 models with 1,500 to 10,000 kg are available.

For charging, you need a suitable power connection and a fixed charging point. In shift operation, you should plan charging times. If one battery charge does not last the shift, a more powerful electric forklift or a second machine is the better choice than switching to diesel in the hall. Outdoors and in yards, diesel forklifts with 3,000 to 10,000 kg are ready for use without charging breaks.

LPG forklifts with 1,800 to 7,000 kg combine both areas. They may only be used in halls if the risk assessment permits it.

Gas cylinders and refuelling

For LPG forklifts, you need an outdoor storage area for spare cylinders and an instructed person for changing cylinders. Refuel diesel machines from a suitable filling station or an approved container, not from canisters in the warehouse.

We bring the forklift from our Passau site by low-loader directly to your business, including the Racklau and Schalding port sites, where the rules of the operator bayernhafen apply. In the district of Passau, we deliver for example to Vilshofen an der Donau, Hauzenberg, Tittling or Neuhaus am Inn.

In the neighbouring district of Freyung-Grafenau we serve Waldkirchen, Freyung and Grafenau, and across the Inn Schaerding. Tell us whether equipment is available at the destination for unloading. Otherwise, the forklift drives down the low-loader's ramp itself, which requires a level area behind the vehicle. More under Transport.

DGUV Vorschrift 68 applies to forklifts. Under § 7, only persons who are at least 18 years old, physically and mentally fit, trained and authorised in writing may drive. Training follows DGUV Grundsatz 308-001.

The company prepares a risk assessment under § 3 BetrSichV, which also covers gates, floors, ramps and drive type. Instruction is given in accordance with § 12 BetrSichV and § 12 ArbSchG. You should include external contractors on your premises in your traffic rules for forklifts, pedestrians and trucks. On delivery, we show your drivers the controls of the rented model; this is not a substitute for the driver's licence.

If required, we can put you in touch with a certified training provider, see Training through certified partners.

Once you have checked the five points, the results are all we need for a quote. Send us the gate width, floor type, gradient, lift height and load weight. Enquire now