Supplying homebuilders and remodelers with lumber in Southern California is a hard job, but somebody has to do it. The Weyerhaeuser Wood Products lumber distribution facility located at the Port of Long Beach keeps a major home improvement chain and private lumber dealers in the region stocked with green Douglas Fir lumber.
Weyerhaeuser relies on Hyster ® lift trucks to move a large volume of lumber at its Long Beach facility. The Long Beach facility currently utilizes a test pilot module of the H210HD2 with the Hyster heavy duty transmission and new generation hydraulic system. This newer module has resulted in significant fuel savings and improved controls for Weyerhaeuser.
New Dream Machine Saves Money, Is CARB Compliant
Roy Blanco, site operations manager for the Weyerhaeuser Long Beach facility, said, “We keep a constant flow of material through this facility.”
Roy added, “The new Hyster H210HD2 is a dream machine. We are saving about 10-15 percent per month on fuel and the controls are much more responsive.”
Weyerhaeuser’s Long Beach facility uses Hyster lift trucks to do a variety of tasks from offloading rail cars to loading trucks, moving inventory, and unloading the barges. This facility uses a fleet of lift trucks, a combination of Hyster H210HD2s, Hyster H155FTs and a few other units.
Several years ago, Weyerhaeuser moved to using propane-powered lift trucks because the diesel trucks of the day were not as good from an air pollution standpoint. The Port of Long Beach wanted to be a leader in the area of clean air, and Weyerhaeuser was doing its part to comply. But the newer diesel lift trucks from Hyster Company run cleaner than propane units. Many of them are even compliant with restrictions produced by the California Air Resources Board (CARB). Weyerhaeuser now uses mostly clean burning diesel
lift trucks.
Roy said, “Fortunately, the new Hyster lift trucks are CARB compliant, actually the new diesel engines run cleaner than propane. CARB is something that drives this and it is definitely a limiting factor.”
Putting The Next Generation Hyster H210HD2 Lift Truck to the Test
The Long Beach facility has been putting the H210HD through its paces since getting the machine earlier in the year and has been very pleased with its performance.
Roy said, “The guy who operates the new Hyster H210HD2 is our most experienced driver. If there was anybody who was going to give you the straight scoop on how that lift performs, it would be him. And he has nothing but great things to say about the performance of the new Hyster H210HD2.”
Weyerhaeuser puts about 20-25 miles on the new H210HD2 each day. Roy said, “The new H210HD2 is much more responsive. You even think about it and the forks are going up.”
The H210HD2 features a stout Cummins ® QSB6.7 industrial diesel engine, with turbo and intercooler. The low exhaust emissions conform to EPA Tier III emissions standards.
Designed for optimal performance and repair, the H210HD2 has a Quad-Cooler containing four separate cooling cores (engine, transmission, charge air cooler, and hydraulic system). The cores are horizontally stacked and are individually replaceable. The integrated hydraulic cooler maintains normal system operating temperatures at high ambient temperatures. Routine maintenance can be done quickly because the side tilting ComforCabII™ allows access to all engine, transmission and other service check points which are conveniently located and easy to reach.
Drivers like the ComforCabII operator compartment with its uncluttered floor design, load sensing power steering and hydraulic. The cab also has unrivaled visibility according to Hyster.
Maintenance and Best Practices Spur Production
One major key to Weyerhaeuser’s production success has been its standardization of best practices to ensure optimal performance. This combined with an extensive maintenance program has kept the Long Beach facility humming.
The good news is that the new Hyster lift truck has needed little maintenance. Roy said, “The new H210HD2 holds up really well with little maintenance.”
Also, Weyerhaeuser works closely with its Hyster dealer, Johnson Hyster located in City of Industry, Calif. Johnson Hyster representatives perform basic maintenance every 60 to 90 days. Thanks to Weyerhaeuser’s management and its relationship with Hyster, the Port of Long Beach facility moves more lumber than almost any other facility in the country with precision and efficiency.
