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The 135 forklifts and reach trucks will be
put to work at Northline’s nine warehouses
and distribution centres located around the
Australian mainland. The bulk of the new fleet
is made of up over 90 new Toyota 8FG25
2.5-tonne gas-powered counterbalance forklifts.
“The 2.5-tonne 8-Series forklifts are very well
built and reliable and are the mainstay of our
forklift fleet,” Craige Whitton, Northline’s Chief
Executive Officer said. “We’ve never had a
Toyota forklift down for a long period. In this
industry we need to know our equipment will
be ready to meet demand at peak periods, and
having a fleet of Toyota forklifts gives us the
confidence we need.”
Northline’s new Toyota fleet also includes more
than 30 Toyota reach trucks and order picker
forklifts plus four heavy-duty 15 to 20-tonne
engine-powered forklifts.
Toyota Material Handling Australia corporate
account manager Peter Lown said the decision
to enter into another long-term arrangement
with Toyota was testament to Northline’s trust
in the strength of the Toyota brand.
Mr Whitton said the quality of service and
strength of the support received from Toyota
was a key factor in Northline renewing its
relationship with Toyota.
“If an issue arises we know a Toyota technician
will be on site within a few hours, and if the
problem can’t be fixed then and there a
replacement forklift will be provided, so there’s
no loss of productivity.
All of Northline’s forklifts and reach trucks are
serviced by factory-trained Toyota technicians
at regular intervals. They also undergo a
weekly ‘start-up’ check where minor problems
are dealt with on site and potential future issues
can be flagged for later attention.
Another plus for Northline is the consistency
of personnel that comes with dealing with an
organisation like Toyota that has a large, highly
trained team of technicians and branch support
staff spread right around the country.
“The consistency that comes from the one
technician visiting the same depot each time
is a real benefit to us,” Mr Whitton said. “They
get to know our staff and our business, so they
are familiar with the way we operate and our
unique needs, and they know who to speak to.”
Toyota’s I-Site online fleet management tool
was another key factor in Northline’s decision
to renew with Toyota.
Mr Whitton said the Toyota I-Site technology
fitted to its new fleet of Toyota forklifts
and reach trucks offered greatly improved
functionality and insights.
“The Toyota I-Site software is fully integrated
and all our managers have access to it,” he
said. “We have just downloaded the mobile
app that provides us with alerts and reports
- it’s very user friendly and makes the task of
managing a large fleet of forklifts much easier.
We’re already getting a much greater benefit
out of it.”
Established in 1983, Northline is a privately
owned and managed Australian company
specialising in four major areas of service
provision: road and rail freight management
services; warehousing and distribution; global
freight forwarding and mining, construction, oil
& gas logistics.
With 13 branches across the nation, the
company’s extensive operation employs a
diverse team of professional staff as well
as dedicated full-time pick-up and delivery
subcontractor partners in all mainland capitals
and many key regional centres.
National freight leader goes the
distance withToyota
forklifts
The durability and reliability of Toyota forklifts has led a major national freight and
logistics company to renew its partnership with Toyota by signing an extended
rental arrangement for 135 Toyota forklifts and reach trucks.
TMH Torque
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1800 425 438
Craige Whitton, Northline’s Chief Executive Officer
