Introduction: The 85–200 mm lift range on a low-lift electric pallet truck is a flat-floor transfer specification, and reading it correctly keeps pallet entry, floor clearance and trailer work realistic.
A lift range is easy to misread. Two numbers appear in a spec sheet, and a buyer may assume the truck is a compact stacker with a shorter mast. In practice, a low-lift electric pallet truck uses its short lift stroke to enter a pallet, raise it just enough to clear the floor, move it horizontally, and set it down. Electric pallet truck manufacturers publish the range to describe that transfer envelope. this guide uses the CBD-15 as a reference point because its published range is 85–200 mm, with 1160 mm forks and low-profile tines, and explains what those numbers do in warehouse work.
The lower number, 85 mm, is the entry height. It describes how low the fork tines sit when the operator slides them into a pallet. That number matters most at ground level: a pallet may sit on a concrete floor, a trailer deck, or a slightly uneven dock plate, and the fork tips have to meet the pallet openings without lifting the load first. Low-profile tines are shaped for this job. The 1160 mm fork length gives the truck a long support base under the pallet, so the load sits on the forks rather than on the tips. When the entry height matches the pallet and floor condition, the tines slide in cleanly and the lift begins from a stable position. A practical dock-side way to picture 85 mm is to watch the fork tips meet a pallet at trailer floor level. The operator is not thinking about stack height; the operator is judging whether the tips will pass under the top deck of the pallet and whether the pallet bottom boards are sound. A damaged bottom board, a raised floor seam, or a thick dock plate can turn a simple entry into a small obstacle. HSE warehouse guidance treats floors, traffic routes, and load handling as part of safe movement, which is why entry height belongs in the planning conversation before the truck is ordered. The 85 mm figure tells you the truck is built to start low and stay close to the floor.
The upper number, 200 mm, is the lifted travel height. It is enough to raise a pallet clear of the floor for horizontal movement, but it is not a racking height. A rack beam sits at a much higher level, often several meters above the floor, and reaching it requires a mast, a carriage, and a different machine class. The CBD-15 has no mast or stacker function; its design is a low-lift pallet truck for flat-floor transfer. In daily work, the 200 mm lift point clears floor joints, dock plate lips, trailer sills, and minor surface changes so the pallet can be moved without scraping. That is the job: lift a little, travel level, set down. This is where the category difference becomes clear. A low-lift truck is not a smaller version of a stacker; it is a pallet-transfer machine with a short lift stroke. The operator walks alongside the tiller, the truck stays low, and the load remains close to the ground. Safe Work Australia's industrial truck guidance frames powered trucks around their operating limits and site conditions, and the same logic applies here: the machine should be matched to the movement task, not stretched into a vertical storage role. If a task includes placing a pallet on a shelf or rack beam, the lift range has already moved beyond this category. A 200 mm lift point is a travel clearance, not a storage level.
Once the two numbers are clear, the useful question is how they fit a route. A route from trailer to staging area is not the same as a route from floor to rack. The lift range should be read against three physical points: the pallet entry, the floor clearance during travel, and the trailer floor transition.
A simple way to decide is to describe the full route in order: enter the pallet, lift to travel height, move horizontally, lower, and withdraw. If that route stays on one level and ends on the floor or a low staging surface, the 85–200 mm range fits the work. If the route ends with a pallet placed on a rack beam, the task calls for a stacker or forklift. The CBD-15 fits the first route by design, with its 85–200 mm range, 1160 mm forks, and low-profile tines. Checking the actual pallet, floor, and trailer conditions is still the practical step before choosing any model, because those conditions decide whether the published numbers match the job.
The 85 mm to 200 mm lift range is best read as a flat-floor transfer envelope. The lower number is the entry height that lets low-profile tines slide under a pallet; the upper number is the travel clearance that lifts the pallet just enough to move it across a smooth floor, dock plate, or trailer sill. That envelope suits dock-to-storage transfer, container unloading, and line-side pallet movement. It does not create a racking height or a vertical storage function. Buyers who keep that distinction clear can compare low-lift electric pallet trucks on the work they actually do, rather than on a stacker task they were never built to perform.
A: On a pallet truck, an 85 mm to 200 mm lift range means the forks start at an 85 mm entry height and can raise the pallet to a 200 mm travel height. The low end helps the tines slide into a pallet on the floor; the high end gives clearance for horizontal movement. It is a low-lift transfer range, not a mast lift range for racking.
A: No. A low-lift pallet truck raises a pallet only enough to clear the floor for horizontal travel. Racking requires a much higher lift and a mast or stacker structure. A 200 mm lift point is a travel clearance, not a rack beam height, so rack placement belongs to a different truck class.
A: Fork entry height matters because a container floor, trailer deck, and dock plate can sit at slightly different levels. An 85 mm entry height lets low-profile tines slide into the pallet openings at the trailer floor without lifting the load first. Once the pallet is on the forks, the lift range provides enough clearance to move it out over the sill and onto the dock.
Warehousing and storage: A guide to health and safety - HSE
General guide for industrial lift trucks
