Hyster Forklift

Hyster is now a global leader in lift trucks as well as warehousing solutions. However, it began as a manufacturer of lifting machines as well as winches. Most of its production was concentrated in the Pacific Northwest and dealt mostly with the wood and logging industry. A couple years after the first forklift trucks were invented Hyster became synonymous with quality manufacturing. Over the preceding eighty years Hyster has continued to get bigger and develop its product line. The growth of its products coupled with its want to stay service oriented has allowed Hyster to develop into the intercontinental participant it is at present.

Hyster experienced major innovations through the 1940's and 1960's. In 1946, Hyster opened a plant in Illinois that was totally devoted to mass producing trucks. This allowed Hyster to drive its costs down and, simultaneously, offer a better quality product at industry competitive prices. In 1952, Hyster began its first foray in to the international production market through opening its first plant in the Netherlands. The Netherlands plant was originally designed to produce two products: Hyster 40" and the Karry Kranes.

Hyster continued to aggressively expand its production operations all the way through the 1950's and 60's. They began building container handlers in the US in 1959 to meet with the ever growing demand for transportation goods. In 1966, Hyster developed a system for enabling a lift truck to go both forward and backwards using the same pedal. This pedal was termed the Monotrol pedal, which revolutionized the industry. Later in the decade Hyster opened a R and D centre in Oregon that was concentrated on improving the design and functionality of forklifts. The centre is still one of the world's top testing facilities in the materials handling industry.

In the 1960's Hyster experienced rapid expansion. Much of the industry was shifting towards bulk manufacturing. To keep up with the times Hyster was inclined to focus on the evolution of these mass markets. As a result, in 1970, the XL design philosophy was born. The XL design philosophy allowed Hyster to afford superior quality at a more inexpensive price. A further expansion in manufacturing capabilities was necessitated by the need in Europe for Internal Combustion Engine Trucks. To plug this gap, a plant in Craigavon, Ireland was opened in 1980. Through the 1980's Hyster continued to focus on developing industry leading lift trucks. The Hyster company name was recognized throughout the globe for its commitment towards excellence. This attention to excellence produced a lot of suitors for the business. In 1989, a large international business based in Ohio called NACCO Industries bought Hyster and started an aggressive expansion strategy. NACCO swiftly changed the XL philosophy with a more driver oriented forklift that concentrated on operator comfort, which is identified as the XM generation of trucks.

The changing requirements of Hyster's customers, led by improvements in supply chain management, required Hyster to constantly innovate and make investments in modern production technologies during the next few decades. Acquisitions and investments were made in the US, Italy, Netherlands, and numerous other places throughout the globe. All of these investments have made Hyster a global leader in the forklift market. In 2009, Hyster celebrated its eightieth anniversary as an industry leader of materials handling equipment, which includes over three hundred different types of forklift trucks.

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