Pallet & Cart Movers

Buying advice

Match each vehicle to the load unit

As of October 2026, the gap between the Swisslog CarryPick (about $40,000) and the Balyo Reach Truck (about $120,000) set the listed range, and no listing was quote-only. Before comparing models, count what actually moves through your building in a shift: full pallets, part pallets, roll cages, carts or racks. A tugger train can shift several carts in one trip but needs wide turns and carts in good repair. A reach truck only earns its price if you store high. A low-level load carrier suits short, frequent runs. List every move by load unit, distance and frequency before you open a specification sheet, then shortlist by vehicle type rather than by brand.

Set traffic rules for people and mixed fleets

Driverless trucks change the traffic pattern for everyone else on the floor. ANSI/ITSDF B56.5-2024 sets safety requirements for guided industrial vehicles, with separate obligations for users and suppliers, and it also covers automated functions on manned trucks. In Great Britain, HSE guidance on the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 expects remote-controlled, self-propelled equipment to stop automatically if it leaves control range and to have safeguards against crushing and impact. Write the rules for crossings, right of way and blocked aisles, and decide how vehicles from different makers will share lifts, doors and junctions without a person stepping in.

Agree who clears a stopped vehicle

Every driverless fleet stops now and then: a pallet left in an aisle, a misread label, a door that fails to open. What counts is how fast the move gets back on track. Ask each maker how a stopped truck alerts people, whether staff can see its camera view and position remotely, and who is allowed to move or release it. Track interventions per shift during the trial and make a target part of the acceptance test. Then read the support contract: response times for faults your site cannot fix, remote diagnostics, and how quickly spare scanners or drive parts reach you.

What to look for

• Rated load and lift height with your heaviest pallet on board
• Navigation approach, and how the vehicle behaves around people and manual trucks
• Fleet software, traffic control and links to your WMS or MES

Common questions

Can autonomous forklifts lift to high racking?

Some models, such as autonomous reach trucks, are built for higher lift heights, while others are designed for floor-level moves. Check the rated lift height against your top beam.

How many vehicles does a site need?

It depends on moves per hour, travel distances and charging time. Share the moves in a typical shift when you request a quote so the fleet can be sized properly.

Sources and further reading

• ANSI/ITSDF B56.5-2024: Safety Standard for Guided Industrial Vehicles — American National Standards Institute (ANSI).
  Summary of the US safety standard for driverless guided vehicles and the automated functions of manned trucks.
• Mobile work equipment (PUWER Part III) — Health and Safety Executive (HSE).
  HSE guidance on duties for mobile work equipment, including remote-controlled self-propelled machines.