Hyster Company announces its selection as a 2024 Green Supply Chain Partner by Inbound Logistics magazine. The award honors Hyster for innovating clean power solutions that are helping to electrify materials handling applications in industries that have traditionally only been powered by internal combustion engines (ICE), providing the opportunity for those businesses to maintain high productivity levels while supporting sustainability initiatives from governments and corporations alike.

Among the company’s most notable innovations in this space are a hydrogen fuel cell-powered (HFC) ReachStacker currently being piloted at the Port of Valencia in Spain, battery-powered terminal tractors that will be shipped to the Port of Mobile, Alabama, and the world’s first HFC-powered top-pick container handler, currently engaged in a pilot program at the Port of Los Angeles, California. The company will also ship an HFC-powered empty container handler and terminal tractor to Hamburg, Germany.

In developing these solutions, Hyster draws on a wealth of experience in electric forklift design from the company’s line of smaller, lighter-capacity equipment, for which Hyster offers extensive electric power options. The lineup includes forklifts powered by lead-acid batteries and those with factory-integrated lithium-ion battery packs, enabling ergonomic advantages that help increase operator productivity while providing operations with several power-related benefits. Among these benefits are fast charging times, zero emissions, and productivity comparable to ICE equipment.

This is the fifth year Hyster has been recognized as a Green Supply Chain Partner. The company’s HFC-powered ReachStacker was also recently recognized with a BIG Sustainability Product of the Year Award, a Green GOOD DESIGN Award, and an innovation to watch by the Global Good Awards. The HFC-powered top-pick container handler was also named a finalist in the 2023 Fast Company Innovation by Design Awards.

“As companies and government bodies grapple with the need to limit carbon emissions, the pursuit of sustainability and clean power in materials handling is becoming less of an option and more of a requirement,” says Lucien Robroek, president of Global Technology Solutions, Hyster Company. “As businesses navigate the growing need for a shift to electric equipment, we’re expanding our green options to include operations where electrification has not previously been possible and are continuing to help customers find the right power solution for their particular application.”