Applied Materials, Inc., based in Santa Clara, Calif., makes semiconductor production systems that produce virtually every type of microchip in the world.

"Each of our shipments represents several million dollars," explains Doug Lambert, Applied Materials' director of logistics. "It's a pretty serious matter if we can't get that last order out because a forklift broke down somewhere."

At Applied Materials' Santa Clara warehouse, the largest of its ten warehouses globally, more than 54 lift trucks operate in nearly 2.5 million square feet of space.

With the company's finished products consisting of more than 10,000 parts, the facility needs a custom mix of trucks to handle its diverse assortment of work-in-process parts. The parts must be stored, picked and delivered to the company's various manufacturing operations on time and on demand.

Making that happen is due in no small part to the fleet's 99% uptime rate. "In my more than 30 years in the warehouse I've never seen anything else that comes close," Lambert says.

Orderpickers comprise the majority of the fleet. The wire-guided trucks have platforms designed for multiple order picking capabilities. Pallet trucks of different configurations depending on the type of load and functions each truck is meant to deliver are also used extensively.

In addition, there are numerous safety features to the trucks. These include deadman pedals, and side-gate interlock switches that ensure that nothing will work until the gates are down. Meanwhile, onboard diagnostics and intuitive controls are critical to the lift truck's efficiency.

"We don't take chances with safety here," Lambert says. "In a warehouse environment, there really has to be teamwork between employees, managers and the equipment manufacturer."

Support from the local dealer provides multiple benefits as well. Careful attention to design of rack systems and specialized trucks fit the company's specific needs and saved Applied Materials about $50,000 during its last redesign.

"Ensuring that there is a happy marriage between the configuration of the racks and the specs of the trucks can really help reduce problems down the road," Lambert says.