Let’s face it. Forklift repairs are expensive. Parts cost a lot and labor costs are well over a dollar a minute. Yes, a dollar a minute. Dealership labor prices today can exceed $120 an hour, and yes. Now it’s 2 dollars a minute. How can Coast Equipment Services keep these costs contained?

• Work smart. Get clarification from the operator(s) on when the problem started and other details to shorten the time required to troubleshoot and identify what the root cause of the problem is. Park the service van close to the equipment to be repaired. If necessary, have the equipment brought outside to reduce steps needed to get tools and test equipment.
• Know the system. If you don’t understand how the electrical, starting or hydraulic system works, you won’t be able to determine what caused the failure. Knowing how it works allows us to make the repair as well as address the cause of the failure.
• Have the necessary tooling. Coast Equipment Services has invested in the jacks, air tools, compressor and test equipment needed to make effective repairs.
• Have the service van stocked with the correct parts. No one can stock every part you may need for a repair on the jobsite. But there is no excuse for not having common wear items, tune up parts, fork latch kits, propane fuel system parts and cooling system parts in stock. Metric and SAE bolts and hardware are a must as well and so are clevis pins, cotter pins, fuel hose and vacuum line. Imagine the cost for a field tech to run to the Napa store for 2’ of 3/8’ fuel line. You are the one paying for this.
• Keep good records on each machine. Having model, serial numbers, mast type, filter numbers and common wear items conveniently noted allows for quick parts ordering if necessary.
• Commitment to quality. Fix it right the first time. Using quality parts and proper techniques.