The global forklift market size is projected to grow from USD 58.9 billion in 2022 to USD 84.5 billion by 2027, at a CAGR of 7.5%, a Reportlinker report shows.
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The market for electric forklift is expected to witness growth due to major factors such as increasing stringent emission norms and the various advantages of the electric forklift including its emission-free and noiseless operations. This greatly aids in material handling applications in closed warehouses.
It is also predicted that the lithium in battery is the fastest growing market during the forecast period. This is primarily due to its various advantages such as longer battery life, increased battery range, a greater number of charging cycles, and others.
Though the lead-acid batteries are still being used in many forklifts, it is expected to be obsolete in the future.The electric forklifts can greatly aid companies’ sustainability goals and reduce their operational costs (incurred on fuel and other activities).
Many leading forklift manufacturers are developing advanced technologies to make their product portfolio more productive and efficient.
The demand for forklifts in the e-commerce industry segment is projected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period.Rapidly changing customer demands, increasing preference for online shopping and surging demand for shorter delivery times are the key reasons for the growth of the e-commerce industry.
The growing fierceness of competition among online retailing companies has increased the demand for efficient fulfillment centers and warehouses.The various advantages of the forklifts including the relatively low initial costs among the material handling equipment, increased productivity and efficiency against manual material handling operations and reduced labor expenses are driving the warehouses to incorporate the forklifts in their material handling operations.
This increase in the productivity and efficiency greatly helps the retailers to meet the growing consumer demand in a timely manner.Such warehouses prefer emission free and noiseless operations.
Thus, the increasing number of warehouses also increase the demand for the sustainable intralogistics solutions such as the electric forklifts. The e-commerce industry in the Asia Pacific region is rapidly growing, with many leading companies establishing new warehouses and fulfillment centers. This makes the Asia Pacific the largest market for forklifts in the e-commerce industry. It is projected that the Asia Pacific will lead the market with a CAGR of 8.7% during the forecast period.
Class 3 forklifts are projected to lead the forklift market during the forecast
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Class 3 forklifts are estimated to grow at the fastest growth rate during the forecast period owing to the wide usage of Class 3 forklifts in warehouse and manufacturing operations globally.These electric low-lift pedestrian pallet trucks have other advantages, including emission-free and noise-free operation, relatively low initial cost, and ease of maintenance.
The Asia Pacific region is projected to be the largest market for Class 3 forklifts during the forecast period.This is mainly due to the greater number of SMEs in this region.
Class 3 forklifts generally have a lower initial cost, and the availability of operators for Class 3 forklifts is generally more. Also, these forklifts have relatively lower maintenance costs.
Due to these factors, SMEs prefer Class 3 forklifts. Class 4/5 forklifts are the next widely used forklifts globally.
According to MarketsandMarkets analysis, Europe is projected to be the second largest forklift market by 2027.
This is mainly owing to factors such as strict worker safety codes, high wages, and the rising price of real estate, demanding more efficient material handling solutions.
Brexit has increased the need for localized distribution centers in Europe.The need for swift order fulfillment has also increased due to increased e-commerce sales.
Europe has been the most developed market for automation in warehousing and material handling processes.
High labor costs, shortage of space, and stringent worker safety rules are some of the primary factors leading to the high penetration of automation technologies in the European material handling ecosystem.
Also, the pharmaceutical industry would drive the adoption of forklifts in Europe. Forklifts are a major part of automated material handling systems, and the region has seen rapid development in this technology. Germany is expected to register the highest CAGR of 8.3% in the European forklift market during the forecast period.
The growing number of distribution centers in the UK, reducing the cost of warehouse automation in Germany, and the growth of the logistics industry in France are expected to drive the demand for forklifts in Europe.
The European forklift market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 7.1% during the forecast period. ■