TeleScope - JCB

12225 Telescope Mag May08_8pt:Layout 1 1/8/08 09:54 Page 1 

No.7 2008 

TeleScope 

New ideas. A look at the versatile JCB Teletruk around the world 

Much more than just a forklift 

From forks to shovel in seconds | Hours saved loading containers | Why not having a mast saves lives 

Car factory robots changed faster | Calculating the true cost on site


JCB Teletruk 

Distribution and Logistics 

Truck loading up 30% 

with Teletruk 

In Lithuania this 2.5 tonnes capacity LPG-powered 

Teletruk is used to reach below dock level. 

As a result warehousing and logistics provider NTTI 

in the town of Varena has increased the volume of 

truck loading by 30%. 

The product is lightweight fibreboad insulation 

panels. This is usually collected now by small lorries 

which have a bed height too low to mate flush to the 

old dock height. So the ability of Teletruk to reach 

below the dock height has solved NTTI’s problem. 

When reaching below dock height NTTI particularly 

like the auto-horizontal fork system which keeps 

forks in the required plane to load trucks while the 

telescopic boom is fully extended. 

NTTI Director Mr Jonas says they are actually doing 

less work because product doesn’t need to be 

moved around so much. Inside the warehouse they 

have changed to a ‘ pyramid ‘ stack format because it 

is easier, saves space, and means any load can be 

reached. So the Teletruk serves as both a universal 

tool and a spacesaver as well. 

The One-Sided Argument 

Components for Honda’s UK car plant at Swindon must be delivered in pristine quality condition and 

therefore cannot be exposed to any rain in bad weather. South Marston DC Ltd takes care of all logistics at a 

purpose designed stock holding centre adjacent to the factory. 

Here the complexities of matching supplies to the factory’s build program is organised through JIT (Just 

In Time) scheduling. 

A cantilever roof extends out from the warehouse the full length of Goods Receiving, and underneath this 

some 180 curtainsider vehicles a day arrive to be offloaded by Teletruks. 

How speed is achieved 

Speed and efficiency is key to the operation, and comes from the ability of Teletruks to reach forward and 

unload from one side only. This means that only the left-hand curtain needs opening on each trailer. The righthand 

curtain stays closed for full protection of the load. 

The Teletruks work at shuttling incoming stillages only the short distance between a trailer and the 

corresponding reception point just inside the warehouse doors. From here conventional warehouse 

forklifts take over put-away duties inside the warehouse racking locations. 

The additional benefit of the single-side unloading operation is improved site safety. Because Teletruks 

work from only one side it is now possible to separate pedestrians from forklifts.


“I have experienced a variety of materials handling equipment 

over the last six years working with Danone and there is 

nothing that matches the JCB Teletruk” Nick Tretis of DHL 

DHL off-load 1000 Danone mineral water pallets in only 16 hours 

By using two LPG Teletruks Third Party Logistics specialist DHL Logistics 

Group gain full utilisation at the Coventry UK national distribution centre 

railhead operated for Danone – the world’s largest supplier of bottled 

mineral water. 

These Teletruks take less than an hour to off-load one wagon and DHL 

therefore complete an entire train of almost 1000 pallets in 16 hours. 

“We use Teletruks purely for offloading wagons,” says Nick Tretis, General 

Manager, DHL Logistics Group. “The extending telescopic boom allows a 

Teletruk to stand on the platform and reach second-row pallets at the back of 

the wagon.” 

The Coventry NDC holds 38,000 pallets of Evian and Volvic mineral water, 

Danone Group UK’s leading two brands. The railhead takes shipments directly 

by train from Danone’s production centre in France, reducing road freight. 

DHL’s two LPG powered TLT 30G 2-wheel drive Teletruks off-load shrinkwrapped 

cube pallets, each weighing between 1 and 1.3 tonnes. 

The wagons used for this application have two sets of double doors per wagon. 

Each double door covers two rows of six pallets. DHL have been using 

Teletruks for the last six years at a number of sites for the combined benefit of 

compact footprint and forward reach. 

“I have experienced a variety of materials handling equipment over the last six 

years working with Danone and there is nothing that matches the JCB Teletruk,” 

says Nick. “While there are large counterbalance trucks available as an 

alternative these require a large area in which to operate so they cannot be used 

in some of the restricted areas where we work. However the Teletruk does fit.”



How Teletruk has changed life at NYK Logistics 

A central position and quality highway connections make Tamworth UK an attractive inducement for leading Third-Party Logistics specialists to 

locate their Regional Distribution Centres here. One of these is global giant NYK Logistics which has two sites. 

Each week NYK’s Relay Park site is journey’s end for between 50 and 100 containers and a similar number of rigid vehicles and curtainsiders from 

Europe and other parts of the world. There are three LPG powered Teletruks here. 

Project Manager Lester Earp: “When we were first shown the Teletruk as an 

option for the mechanical handling on site there were one or two raised 

eyebrows - it was something new and change is always difficult within a large 

business - but once we'd had one on trial through Gunn JCB the lads on the 

shop floor loved them. They would rather use them than anything else. 

“Straight away the major impact we found was the time saving when loading 

and unloading vehicles. Because of the boom arm we can load from one side of 

the vehicle, so we only open one curtain. There's less travel around vehicles 

and so it’s obviously much safer. Health and Safety is one of our major concerns 

and a major bonus with Teletruks. 

Obviously we try to keep pedestrians and traffic to a minimum in the loading areas, 

but there are times when you do need to have pedestrians out there and Teletruks 

minimise the risk - I wouldn’t say they eliminate it - but certainly minimise risk. 

As well as single side loading which reduces risk the better forwards visibility on 

the Teletruk – without the mast on a conventional forklift – makes a big impact 

because the guys have good all round visibility. 

One of the other benefits we’ve found is the Teletruk is fitted as standard with 

a load indicator which is a very simple visual aid, just green and red lights going 

up in a scale so the operators know when they’re getting close to the 

maximum. We’ve found it very useful – particularly as it is directly in the eyeline. 

It’s fitted as standard so there’s no additional on-cost for our company. 

One of the other benefits we’ve found is in accessing pyramid-stacked goods – 

that’s where goods aren’t stacked directly on top of one another both in 

containers and out in yard storage areas. 

We reach over freight to pick parts behind rather than down-stacking which 

saves an inordinate amount of time. It’s also very good for recovery of freight 

that has moved or slipped. Instead of having to down-stack everything around it 

or access from the side we can go over the top. The increased tilt of the forks 

means we can remain level when we do that – so we can recover pallets more 

easily and quickly, and more safely. 

Summary 

The boom that increased safety factors, saved time, and reduced the area reserved for loading 

by two-thirds 

It’s difficult to say what the major benefit of the Teletruk is; there’s the time 

savings in loading and recovery of pallets, in accessing goods, and the safety 

aspects which are obviously a big concern across the industry. All these things 

contribute to what is a very effective piece of kit. 

Future 

The Teletruk has made a real impact on how we conduct our business on this site. 

On this site, particularly with the limited space we have, we’ve been able to 

entirely eliminate the need for fork extensions which I’m not particularly a fan 

of anyway, and also reduce our area of reserve for loading by up to two-thirds 

with the use of the boom and the single side loading. 

I think in this particular environment NYK Logistics wouldn’t even consider 

going back to conventional counterbalanced trucks.” 

Quote: 

“I think for similar areas of the logistics industry the Teletruk – 

although it’s a new piece of kit and people are a little bit nervous about 

using new kit – in the future it will become a standard piece of 

equipment. The benefits far outweigh the additional cost” 

Lester Earp, Project Manager, NYK Logistics ( UK ) Ltd, Relay Park, Tamworth UK


Visibility and Safety 

A lorry-mounted container of imported goods backed to a designated delivery access at an NYK Logistics warehouse in Tamworth UK, is off-loaded by an LPGpowered 

Teletruk. With no mast in front, the operator has unrivalled forwards visibility inside the dark container. 

What price forwards visibility ? 

Statistics can only record lift truck accidents, not near misses. But across the 

world of materials handling a sweeping change in attitudes has begun. 

“It’s impossible to say how many lives have been saved since Ghana Ports 

and Harbours Authority (GPHA) began using Teletruks in 2001, but GPHA 

are convinced there certainly have been quite a number in Ghana’s Ports.” 

Seth Martey, Former Operations Manager,GPHA,Tema/Takoradi Ports 

“The accepted view now is that accidents can be designed out of the 

workplace, such as separating pedestrians from vehicles.” 

Chris MacRae, health and safety spokesman at the UK Freight Transport 

Association, commenting in a recent report entitled ‘Life and death in Logistics’ 

“There are several risks associated with the use of lift trucks in 

confined areas, especially if pedestrians are sharing the same space” 

Ian Smith, transport advisor at the UK Freight Transport Association’s Member 

Advice Centre 

“You can’t fix a price on improved safety in the workplace, but all our 

information convinces us that safety has moved to the very top of 

virtually every site management’s agenda.” 

“Everything we’ve been hearing over the past two years confirms our 

belief that a Teletruk operator’s clear view ahead is a key ingredient in 

improving safety.” 

Chris Nowell, General Manager, JCB Industrial 

“We don't have to deal with the blind spots at the end of the vehicle, 

with Teletruks we're not coming round the side of the vehicle on a blind 

corner where potentially you could hit a pedestrian” 

Lester Earp – Project Manager, NYK Logistics ( UK ) Ltd 

This Teletruk entering a container in a Ghana port shows what a good 

view ahead is presented to the operator. 

This container with hinged side doors demonstrates just how good 

forwards visibility is for the operator. And if there are manual workers 

inside the container a Teletruk operator will see them.



Ports and Terminals 

John Garner is General Manager of the specialist company which services cruise liners at the 

Port of Southampton - Cruise and Passenger Services Ltd. Here he explains the time saving 

and space saving advantages of using Teletruks. 

“Today we’re working on the Queen Mary 2 and when she’s fully stored-up she’ll be 

leaving for New York this afternoon with about 2,600 passengers on board and crew. 

It’s all time factors and the more time we can save these ships the more fuel 

they can save. It’s all a knock-on situation where, if you’ve got the right 

equipment, it’s beneficial. 

We normally get the baggage off by crane at 38 Berth – the original QE2 Berth 

– but QM2 has moved here to 106 Berth to be discharged by Teletruk forklifts. 

Yes it has moved just because of the Teletruks. 

Teletruk is the best and most versatile fork truck I’ve worked with. It’s very 

quick. On one particular occasion the Queen Mary 2 got in three and a half 

hours late – and was put back on time. 

Speed is essential. With the Teletruks we’ve done it in 45 minutes, with the 

cranes two and a half hours. 

We use the JCBs for all our operations unloading baggage cages on all the ships 

with a cage operation, like the Golden Princess and the Sea Princess; most 

P&O ships now are cage operation. 

The cages weigh roughly a tonne and these machines pick ‘em up on their full 

stretch out, which is good. There are about 175 cages to come off so speed is 

essential. 

We must have the reach and the JCB Teletruk is the ideal Fork for that. 

Offloading lorries from one side is a faster, safer, slick operation. Also we 

unload a lot of lorries from one side. Our record loading Ships Stores is 344


“Speed is essential. With the Teletruks 

we’ve done it in 45 minutes, with the 

cranes, two and a half hours” John Garner 

tonnes on a P&O vessel. Unloading from one side cuts down on the room 

because we can put the lorry against a wall or near the water. Operating on 

one side is a very slick operation. 

Offloading from one side is safer and faster. 

The main thing is to get the ships away on time. They won’t leave any earlier, 

they’ve got their time slots, but it is all about making sure the ships are ready to 

move and we always do. 

We’ve been ‘Best Turn-Around Port’ for the last four years and now we’ve also 

got ‘Best Turn-Around Port Europe’, so it’s having the right equipment and 

using it in the right way. Everything moves faster but safely. 

Versatility in Panama terminal 

This Teletruk 30D is on active service in the port city of Colón on the 

Caribbean side of the Republic of Panama. It caught the attention of the 

Manzanillo International Terminal for versatility and is currently being 

used for numerous cargo applications, including loading onto large cargo 

trucks and directly onto vessels. 

The Manzanillo International Terminal - MIT - is a logistics centre for 

port services to shipping lines transiting the Panama Canal or serving the 

Caribbean and South American regions. 

MIT’s facilities and workforce of over 700 make it the largest container 

transhipment terminal in Latin America. 

The main thing is - to do the right job you’ve got to have the right equipment. 

The conventional Fork is for us, even though we use them, a thing of the past.” 

[1] The forklift of choice 

At the heart of the action, Teletruk is the forklift of choice for this ship’s 

Captain. These two Teletruks work as a team to offload baggage cages 

from the cruise liner Queen Mary 2. Here the ship is on turnaround at 

Southampton, UK, its port of embarkation before leaving for New York. 

[2] Recycling at sea 

A temporary recycling centre has to be set up on the dockside every time 

a cruise liner is on turnaround. Here a Teletruk 35D removes baled 

cardboards from the Queen Mary 2. 

[1] 

[2]


Buy one… …get one 

side FREE 

Work Smarter 

So come on – what is the point of still loading from both sides like this? 

For more information Freephone (UK only) 0800 150550 

JCB Industrial, Harewood Estate, Leek Road, Cheadle, Staffordshire ST10 2JU www.jcb.com


Builders’ Merchants 

Two machines in one - 

a practical solution 

As a member of the Tout Faire Materiaux group, 

builders' merchants Materiaux Lebreton supply a 

very comprehensive range of products to customers 

in and around the northern French town of 

St-Aquilin-de-Pacy. 

Brick packs, blocks, aggregates and in particular 

timber for this strongly agricultural surrounding 

region means that the company's 35D Teletruk 

needs to be very versatile. Because of constantly 

changing requirements M Philippe Lebreton finds 

that its 3.5 tonnes capacity is essential, indeed the 

minimum. 

The machine has a Changezee hydraulic quickdisconnect 

carriage allowing change in just a few 

seconds between forks and a shovel. 

“I am very happy with the Teletruk and 

must say the Pack Auto (Changezee) is 

a very practical solution for us” M Lebreton 

>>



Builders’ Merchants 

Skip hire – 33% savings possible 

A Teletruk will reduce waste skip hire and therefore save money. Over a year 

this saving can add up to a considerable sum. But it only takes a few minutes 

each day. 

The Teletruk’s boom is fully controlled downwards as well as upwards by 

hydraulic power. This means light to medium density waste can be broken 

down and compressed to achieve greater volume. 

At the Reseau Pro builders’ merchant depot in Laval, northern France, they are 

making savings for free. The forks carriage is rotated down to break up old 

pallets, and also to compress general loose waste. Skips like this one cost EUR 

350 each to hire. By compressing waste Teletruk frees up 33% extra space and 

therefore fewer skips need hiring in. How much can be saved on your site ? 

[1] And in less than 20 seconds this Teletruk at Reseau Pro is transformed 

from a forklift into a rehandling shovel. All it takes is a Teletruk hydraulic 

‘Changezee’ quickhitch. 

[2] The French-style green bin is filled will sand or aggregates, the Teletruk 

switches back to forks, and the bin is loaded onto the delivery vehicle. On 

arrival at site the bin is hooked up and lifted clear by the lorry’s on-board 

crane. The sand is then discharged through a manually-operated trapdoor 

at the base of the bin. 

[1] 

[2]


“The Teletruk comes in at higher initial cost, but the time savings 

and the flexibility you get are well worth the extra. 

Quite simply – it can do more” Mike Cocker, Managing Director, Joseph Parr (Alco) Ltd. 

The forklifts that changed the yard 

When two conventional forklifts came up for renewal at Lancashire 

independent builders’ merchant Joseph Parr ( Alco ) Ltd future site needs and 

medium-term plans for a new warehouse put flexibility at the top of the 

decision making agenda. 

Mike Cocker: “We trialled a Teletruk with a brick clamp picking flagstones, and 

we liked the idea of being able to pick just the right number from a pack of 22 in 

one go, without manual handling. With the boom reaching across an opened 

brick pack to a full one behind there was another advantage, and we also liked 

the idea of parking a lorry for loading from one side only - should we so choose.” 

By early 2008 the company had replaced two conventional forklifts with three 

Teletruks, all three tonnes capacity, two-wheel-drive, and with side-shifting 

brick clamps. When the lease on a conventional all-wheel-steer loading shovel 

runs out it will be replaced with a four-wheel-drive Teletruk for mornings on 

bagging duties and afternoons on forks. 

“The trouble with the loading shovel is that it is OK for bagging and loading in 

the mornings, but then it gets parked up in the afternoons. A 4 x 4 Teletruk will 

give us utilisation all the time either on bagging or forks.” 

“The Teletruks give us a lot more opportunities. It’s difficult to give a definite figure 

financially, but the long term value is there in operational savings. We have a general 

feeling that now we can do more – a lot more. When you’re really busy it saves 

time and gets the customers loaded and away quicker, so they’re happy.” 

“We are considering putting up a new warehouse building on site and when 

that happens the lorries will park up alongside; we won’t need the 20 metres or 

so each side to load, we’ll do it from one side with a Teletruk.” 

User summary 

Mike Cocker: “This is all about time savings. The Teletruk makes it much easier 

to get the job done.”



Manufacturing 

Moving forward for Land Rover’s Freelander 2 production line 

Teletruks are playing vital roles in the removal of production line robots for 

maintenance at Land Rover and Jaguar factories in the UK. 

At Halewood Operations, Liverpool, home to the Jaguar X-Type and Land 

Rover Freelander 2, a TLT 35D fitted with a fork positioner is used to remove 

any robot if it fails. Previously Halewood had to hire in a crane or dismantle 

robots and repair them in-situ. 

The Freelander 2 assembly line is located close to the Jaguar X-Type line. 

There are a host of access issues that the Teletruk can avoid thanks to its 

forwards reach, which makes it the ideal solution for automotive robot 

removal. Maintenance staff can now quickly change one robot for another and 

repair the first one off-line. It has been at the forefront of major repair work to 

the assembly lines. It is also used daily as part of routine maintenance work. 

A Teletruk was chosen because of the extending boom and also because the 

machine’s weight and size is within the plant’s requirements. The 35D has 

forward reach of 2.43 metres, which allows it to lift 2100 kg at 2 metres 

forward extension. It can also lift its capacity 3.5 tonnes to a height of 4.4 

metres. With no mast obscuring the view as on a traditional forklift truck, 

the operator has clear forward vision. 

Able to get to 90 per cent of locations, the Teletruk’s extending boom allows 

maintenance staff to reach under overhead systems. It is also used to reach 

over guard fences and provides a safe slinging point. 

The side-shifting fork positioner moves forks left and right as a fixed pair, as well 

as closer together or wider apart, all lever-controlled from the cab.


Teletruks can be flame-proofed 

Teletruks destined for highly specialised working environments in the oil and gas industries can be fitted with flame proofing systems. Below is part of the Zone 

2 - 5000D flame proofing system recently installed by Pyroban on two four-wheel-drive three-tonnes capacity TLT30D. These machines are now supporting 

operations on North Sea Oil Platforms and were supplied by Teletruk Norwegian dealer AL Maskin. 

Due to the harsh conditions found on these platforms, a protective lacquered coat was applied over the paint on both machines to reduce the onset of corrosion.



Manufacturing 

Improved site safety and precision-handling of carpet rolls 

Two Teletruks are providing the ideal solution in Italy to a difficult materials 

handling problem at specialist industrial carpet manufacturer ALMA. 

Each TLT 30D machine is fitted with a special jib designed to pick up 4m long 

carpet rolls, each weighing 1.1 tonnes. The excellent forwards visibility of the 

Teletruk is employed alongwith hydraulic lateral rotation of the load. This 

means the carpet roll can be rotated to allow the operator to safely and 

accurately steer the Teletruk and the carpet roll around corners. 

The factory’s decision to stop using ordinary masted forklifts was due to safety 

concerns, and to prevent having two banksmen walking alongside the roll, 

warning pedestrians, and turning the loose roll manually. 

The jib is mounted direct to the Teletruk in place of the normal forks carriage. 

Whilst the jib can pick up a carpet roll at a variety of heights, and reach to the 

centre of a roll stockpile, hydraulic rotation can only be made when the Teletruk 

boom is at both pre-determined height and forwards extension. Limit-switches 

prevent movement unless all the required set positions have been met. 

These specially equipped Teletruks are able to travel safely along the factory aisles, 

and accurately rotate a full new roll so that it will correctly face a direction change. 

There is an additional safety and time saving benefit for the factory near Florence 

because rolls can be lined up quickly to production line support cradles. Previously 

lining up a roll to a cradle took more time and three operatives.


German engineering factory saves 40% loading time 

The switch to Teletruk has given German engineering company Interdomo a 

40 percent reduction in lorry loading times. 

Technical Manager Gerhard Scholten: “We have replaced three ordinary 

forklifts with two Teletruks. Now we are 40% more efficient on loading and 

unloading. The Teletruk comes at a higher price but now we can load or unload 

in only 30 to 40 minutes. Also we get more work done around the plant. In the 

afternoon we take the forks off one Teletruk and put on a rotator so we can 

load steel scrap into a container.” 

Loading and unloading is done on the access roadway along one side of the 

factory in the town of Emsdetten. Before switching to Teletruks Interdomo 

loaded from one side of a lorry by means of long fork extenders. These 

continually needed fitting for lorry loading and removing afterwards so other 

jobs could be completed with standard forks. 

The change from forks to rotator is completed in only two minutes because 

one Teletruk, manufactured in 2008, is fitted with JCB’s latest hydraulic 

‘Changezee’ quick-disconnect carriage.


The JCB Teletruk. 

Designed for ELV. 

The JCB Teletruk counterbalanced forklift uses its unique 

telescopic forwards reach to place incoming ELV cars in holding 

bays or de-contamination stations. 

• Maximum lift capacity 3.5 tonnes 

– on small forklift footprint 

• 1800mm forks with 360˚ rotator and unique 111˚ tilt up or down 

• Twin front wheels for extra stability and maximum control 

• Totally sealed hydrostatic drive 

• 4 x 4 option for difficult yard surfaces 

The JCB Teletruk. It’s not just another counterbalanced forklift 

For more information call Freephone (UK only) 0800 150550 

* The masted forklift used in our test was selected as representative of generic machine type, and no criticism of any specific manufacturer or any 

machine model is implied or intended. 1200mm forks used on both machines. 

www.jcb.com



Tyre Recycling 

The most profitable machine for a profitable sector 

Back in March 2004 French waste collection and recycling group OURRY S.A. 

created a specialist operation for salvage and disposal of tyre casings on its site 

at Champdeuil, near Melun. From the start OURRY has been using Teletruks. 

M Hubert Husson, the site manager, quickly realised that the Teletruk was 

going to be the perfect machine for this activity because the site has specific 

characteristics. 

M Husson: “We are involved in collection from diverse tyres distributors, our 

main client being Centres Autos Leclerc. With these big clients we organise 

collection using 33 m³ skips which we collect as soon as they are full.” 

For clients producing a smaller volume OURRY collect with a covered trailer. 

Each month 500 tonnes of tyres, all categories, are produced just from the 

Parisian Region and are taken to the 10 000 m² Champdeuil centre which 

operates with only six staff. Sorting is done for dispatch as serviceable 

secondhand casings exported to Africa, South America, and the West Indies 

mainly, or for recycling. The Teletruk is the only forklift on the premises. 

20% of the tyres that arrive at Champdeuil are still in good condition and can 

be sold as secondhand. These are sorted by size into made-to-measure metal 

cages. There is a 1000 m² hall dedicated to sorting. As the operation developed 

OURRY changed their original 3 tonnes capacity machine for one with 3.5 

tonnes capacity to deal with the heavier loads like Génie Civil tyres. 

How Teletruk has brought benefits 

Teletruk is used continually purely because attachments are changed quickly 

and easily. 

These include bale clamp, shovel, forks, and tyre-pole spike. 

Tyres destined for recycling are pushed into a pile by the bale clamp. Either the 

shovel or the bale clamp is then used to load semi-trailers which deliver to 

specialist recyclers to be used as compounds in road asphalt, floor coverings for 

play areas, wall soundproofings and maybe even anti-landslide barriers on 

mountains. 

With the forks the Teletruk handles the metal cages where the re-usable tyres 

are sorted by size. For the larger diameter casings such as BTP, Agricultural and 

Génie Civil tyres, OURRY use the tyre-pole spike. 

M Husson: “This tyre recycling operation represents only 5% of the transport 

activity of our Group, but it contributes 30% of Group turnover.” 

“The easy change of attachments gives us versatility and therefore a very highly 

worked machine which proves very profitable to us. Besides this profitability, 

we appreciate the sturdiness of the Teletruk, also its ergonomics, the comfort, 

and the visibility due to the absence of a mast.”



Recycling 

Solving space issues in metals processing 

Maxilead Metals of Tyldesley, Manchester, UK, began as a car breakers yard in 

1985 but the old days of salvaging parts from wrecks are long gone due to the 

huge growth in demand for metals, chiefly from China, and the increasing 

availability of scrapped vehicles arriving daily. 

Today Maxilead is one of the UK’s biggest metals processors, and is believed to 

have the largest undercover facilities for separation of copper, brass and other 

non-ferrous. 

This rig handles the company’s ELV - End of Life Vehicle – work, where all fluids, 

wheels and the battery are removed prior to crushing. The 3.5 tonnes capacity 

Teletruk is using its fork carriage back-tilt to offer the vehicle to the platform. 

Chairman and managing director Peter Clay: “Our growth is right off the scale. 

We’re growing so fast that space is an issue. So the Teletruk is the best forklift 

for our site because that boom saves us space. It lets us work from only one 

side of curtainsiders and we save time.” 

As far as is possible Maxilead prefers to work inside the warehouses to minimise 

noise pollution to the surrounding residential areas and has even constructed 

substantial concrete barriers over 4 m high to suppress the noise of yard work. 

Münster Germany 

“I’ve been doing this job for 28 years and I’ve 

never had a better machine for this type of 

work. It is perfect. The only thing I can’t do 

with it is plough a field!” - Teletruk operator 

Hans Knuefer, Druckhaus Aschendorff publishing 

plant, Münster 

This 3.5 tonnes capacity Teletruk is fitted with 

a rotator to tip waste bins into containers in 

the recycling compound. Some 50 – 60 bins 

of waste must be removed from the 

production plant each shift. It is also used for 

delivering machine parts weighing up to 3 

tonnes to whatever location is required by 

the maintenance team. The plant produces 

over 250,000 newspapers every day. 

The fastest yet 

This Teletruk 35D 4 x 4 is stockpiling plastic sheathed wire cable offcuts prior 

to separation and bagging of the copper core at Sindawonye Granulators and 

Processors, Germiston, South Africa. 

There are fewer moving parts on the boom of a Teletruk compared to the mast 

channels, rollers and chains of a conventional forklift. The transmission system is 

fully enclosed hydrostatic drive. This means the machine resists contamination and 

the abrasive action of many recyclable products. Sindawonye have a very busy and 

congested yard and they value their Teletruk highly because it loads curtainsiders 

and containers faster than any conventional method tried previously.


Six hours loading time per container saved 

by one Teletruk 

Johannesburg, South Africa 

Two Teletruks have revolutionised the recycling operation at a Gauteng metals 

recycling plant in South Africa. 

They load one container each day (240 per year). It used to take eight hours 

per container but since Teletruks arrived the job is done in two. This is a huge 

saving just in terms of operator time, cost and fuel. An associated benefit is the 

opportunity for increased throughput of containers per year. 

The most notable benefit is this reduction in time and the company is delighted. 

Only one Teletruk with a clamp loads the containers. Previously the task was 

done by a mixture of conventional mast FLTs and manual labour struggling with 

timbers and bars to place cubes in the left and right top corners, the most 

difficult places to reach. 

The other Teletruk 35D with a grapple is assigned to an arduous job picking a 

variety of steel sheets and offcuts and feeding a Sierra baler-logger machine. 

The baler is equipped with its own hydraulic overhead grapple but when this 

fails the Teletruk immediately takes over to keep production going. A Teletruk 

has the ability to 'sweep' metal debris from the floor into a suitable pile for the 

grab, and also to fetch and carry from stockpiles out of reach of the balerlogger's 

overhead grapple. 

Both Teletruks are diverted to yard housekeeping duties during off-peak 

periods, and this in itself is regarded as a significant benefit because the whole 

site is now tidy with regulated positions for different activities. 

Below - both Teletruks work together at feeding and removing product 

from the baler-logger. 

Handling WEEE materials at Wincanton 

Wincanton Environmental Solutions, UK award winners for their hi-tech 

approach to implementing the European WEEE (Waste Electronic and 

Electrical Equipment Directive), use a 3.5 tonnes capacity Teletruk at their 

West Midlands Sortation Centre. 

For safe handling of the many varied shapes and sizes of WEEE material such as 

desktop computer terminals, vacuum cleaners, microwave ovens and music 

centres a special grab attachment is used. This is a shovel fitted with a topopening 

hydraulic jaw and a leading-edge plate welded to four hydraulic fork 

tines. This picks up at the pile, any loose trailing cables are cut free, and the 

load is tipped into 4.52m high sided bulker trailers which deliver to the stateof-the 

art Wincanton treatment centre in Billingham, Cleveland. Opened in 

2006 this was the first of its kind in the UK and can process 100,000 tonnes 

a year. 

Below – Teletruk with grab picking WEEE recyclables, and then loading into a 

high sided lorry 

Safe handling underneath conveyors 

South African recycled metals have become a prized resource on the international 

metals markets because of product purity, having never been recycled before. 

The Teletruk is highly regarded by end users for its small size and versatility. 

A major unique benefit is the ability to reach safely underneath moving 

overhead conveyors to recover fallen materials. 

The South African metals recycling sector is enjoying a boom from foundries 

which are having to switch sourcing to scrap because the mines are losing 

production due to regular sudden power cuts called ‘Power Share’.



4 x 4 Capability 

Where other industrial forklifts can’t, Teletruks can 

Sometimes it’s hard to believe that Teletruks are counterbalanced industrial 

forklifts not specifically designed for rough terrain. 

Take this example in Durban, South Africa. When storms turn the hard-packed 

surface of this storage area into a mud bath Teletruk’s 4 x 4 transmission really 

pushes the boundaries of what’s possible. 

This is one of two 35D 4x4s working for warehousing and distribution 

company MGI Freight Management. The company stores and loads spun 

concrete pipes onto flat bed lorries a short distance from the main warehousing 

and distribution business. 

4 x 4 in 2.50m aisles 

Teletruk 35D 4 x 4 in Weir Group's foundry, 

Johannesburg, South Africa. 

This Teletruk collects resin-bonded silica sand for 

screening and re-use in the moulding process. The 

essential ability is to negotiate narrow aisles which 

reduce to only 2.50m width on the final approach to 

the screening machine. 

The foundry produces over 100 tonnes of specialised 

castings a month for the Weir Group's range of 

pumps and valves machined and assembled on the 

same site. 

The pipes are 6m long and range in weight from 1 tonne for the biggest diameter 

single pipe to packs of smaller diameters up to 2.4 tonnes. The Teletruk’s back-tilt 

of 16 degrees is used to hold loads secure at the heel of the forks carriage. 

This 4x4 Teletruk works in wet, difficult conditions alongside huge loading shovels and dump trucks at the century-old Piketty Quarry near historic 

Fontainbleau, south of Paris. A shovel is fitted for clean-up work near the conveyor screens. This is changed for forks inside the bagging plant. Piketty Quarry 

processes 600,000 tons of limestone per year, a third of it by crushing.


The forklift that thinks its a 4 x 4 Wheeled Loader 

Dupré Vermiculite, a division of Microfine Minerals Ltd, recently opened a 

purpose-built production plant in Newcastle under Lyme, UK. The imported 

raw vermiculite base product is sourced from a variety of mines in China, Africa 

and chiefly from the highest quality Palabora mines in South Africa. Because it is 

delivered either by flexible bag or loose both a forklift and a loading shovel is 

required. 

Both these requirements for feeding the hopper with various grades, either 

loose or bagged at the start of the production line, are answered by a single 

Teletruk 35D 4 x 4. 

The UK plant stores loose product in one of 3 large bays for different grades 

and quality able to hold 400 tonnes. Product also arrives in standard one tonne 

flexible big bags or also in 1200 kg bags which are taller at 1300mm. 

The bags have an exit at the base, whereby the vermiculite is vented into the 

hopper by manual release of a flexible sealing chute. 

Smaller, 50% less fuel, same load capacity 

Big wheeled loading shovels are familiar workhorses in the many factories of 

Brazil. But now industrialists are discovering little Teletruks can do the same 

jobs in less space, and with less fuel. 

Mário Neves of JCB dealer Auxter in São Paulo City says: “Our photo shows a 

3.5 tonne capacity 4 x 4 Teletruk alongside a much bigger 4 x 4 Michigan HT 

Loading Shovel in Sorocaba, one of our leading industrial towns in São Paulo State. 

Our customer Dibloco was using the HT Wheeled Loader for all materials 

handling in the various processes of manufacturing concrete breeze blocks. But 

now the little Teletruk has replaced the Michigan for most work due to its small 

size and forwards reach. The blocks are made on metal sheets, stacked in 

frames and moved to a shed to dry. Then they are taken off the trays, put onto 

pallets and loaded onto trucks. The metal plates and stacker frames are taken 

back to the block press. 

The customer prefers the Teletruk as it uses about 50% less fuel which is 

better for the operators because emissions are reduced. When fitted with forks 

the Teletruk and the Michigan Wheeled Loader will lift virtually the same, so 

why use a big machine ? ” 

The loose material is delivered to the hopper by means of a JCB Bagezee 

'Trapdoor' shovel. The Teletruk switches between Bagezee and the flexible big 

bags by manual Changezee quick-disconnect carriage. 

The required load-over clearance height for the 1300mm bags above the 3m 

hopper lip is achieved by rotating the forks 180 degrees. Back tilt is easily 

achieved in this position by the Teletruk's tilt carriage. A small amount of 

forwards reach on the boom is required to clear a floor mounted protection 

barrier in front of the hopper structure. 

Whilst the floor surface is new and high quality the traction of a 4 x 4 Teletruk is 

required to cope with the dusty floor environment, and particularly the 

gradients down into the bays and also down to the feed hopper. 

The process plant extracts geologically locked-in moisture. The resulting 

finished product is sold into numerous applications around the world which 

need the insulation properties of vermiculite plus its natural resistance to 

combustion at very high temperatures. 

Now the Michigan does little work. With a shovel it loads hoppers about twice 

an hour with sand. Also when the Teletruk is too busy inside the plant forks are 

fitted and it sometimes loads trucks with pallets.



Rental 

Italian plant rental leader Venpa shows the way with Teletruk 4 x 4 fleet 

Italy’s top plant rental company Venpa bought five Teletruks to trial back in 

2004. Rental business has since been so successful that they have expanded to a 

current fleet of 53. 

The Teletruk fleet is part of a very wide machine portfolio across construction 

equipment, materials handling, logistics, and access equipment such as scissor 

lifts and cranes. The Venpa all-products fleet numbers 3700 units. 

Speaking at the VENPA headquarters on the main highway from Venice to 

Bologna, Venpa General Manager (Lifting Equipment Division) Nicola Grudina said: 

“Our salesmen cover very localised territories so they know everyone. They 

assess problems faced by end-users and then offer the right specialist solutions. 

We see the Teletruk as a specialist ‘niche’ solution, not primarily as an industrial 

forklift.” 

Venpa General Manager (Lifting Equipment Division) Nicola Grudina 

The company, which began in 1989 renting access platforms, have been renting 

out construction equipment for about two years since the strong relationship 

with JCB Italy began. Venpa sell nationally, with partner companies in Albania, 

Slovenia and most recently Russia. 

Venpa experience of TLT 

Mr Grudina says about Teletruk: “ This is an innovative problem solver. Our initial 

client reactions have been that it is a high quality machine. It is the ideal rental 

machine, simple as that.” 

For the time being Venpa intend to offer only the TLT 35D 4 x 4 model which 

they consider the most versatile machine for rental clients. 

On construction builds such as the new shopping centres in Italy, Venpa offer 

JCB Loadall rough terrain telescopic handlers at the start of the build, and then 

switch to Teletruk when the main structures are in place, or when site space 

becomes constricted, and when single-side unloading of lorries is a benefit. 

This way Venpa takes the rental business on sites from start to finish. A key 

Venpa experience is that the Teletruk creates its own market. One example is 

the ability to lift materials inside tunnels under construction for a new high 

speed rail link to Kiev. 

At Venpa headquarters one Service facility is dedicated to access equipment 

and cranes, and another is reserved for CE equipment and materials handling 

equipment. These Service shops follow a full check-over regime for every 

machine returned off-hire no matter if it has been hired for just one day. 

VENPA Group profile 

• Staffed by young employees mostly under the age of 40, with very low staff 

turnover 

• Clear vision for success is based on providing unique solutions, and an 

intensive local sales focus 

• Based some 10 km inland from the Venetian Lagoon 

• The largest plant hire company in Italy. Also 51% majority shareholding in 

11 other companies which trade under the VENPA brand 

• East Europe rental market seen as a strong growth area 

• Main communication expressed as NOLEGGIO ASSOLUTO, meaning 

Absolute Quality 

[1] New Teletruks by the Venice-Bologna highway ready for despatch 

[2] Teletruk in Venpa HQ yard loading rental scissor lift for despatch on Venpa 

low loader 

[1] [2]


The Costs 

Calculating the Added Value to you 

The JCB Teletruk concept offers the prospect of sweeping change; new ways 

of achieving greater efficiencies. The Teletruk is not just another forklift. 

Ask for a full assessment from your dealer. Your site will get a thorough ‘healthcheck’ 

on all the specific examples indicated here, and more besides. 

This check will give you a comprehensive overview of how far the Teletruk 

concept applies, and well before any recommended machine might arrive for 

demonstration and testing by your operators.


View from a JCB Teletruk 

View from a masted forklift 

Now you see them 

Now you don’t 

The JCB Teletruk is a unique forklift with significantly improved forwards visibility. 

There’s no mast. This means an operator can see both pedestrians ahead. The man on 

the left is only 3.1 m away from the fork tips. The man on the right is 4.4 m away. 

But behind a two-stage mast on any masted forklift both men at exactly the same 

distance can be hidden. With a wider three-stage mast they can be closer still. 

And still hidden. 

When it comes to visibility, are you quite sure the forklifts you’re using now have such 

a clear view ahead? 

The JCB Teletruk. Do you see it now? 

For more information call Freephone (UK only) 0800 150550 

* The masted forklift used in our test was selected as representative of generic machine type, and no criticism of any specific manufacturer or any 

machine model is implied or intended. 1200mm forks used on both machines. 

JCB Industrial, Harewood Estate, Leek Road, Cheadle, Staffordshire ST10 2JU www.jcb.com

TeleScope - JCB

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