The European steel industry stands as an example of industrial strength and endurance. With a turnover of approximately €191 billion and a workforce of over 300,000 skilled professionals, Europe produces an average of 140 million tonnes of steel annually. This output is supported by more than 500 production sites across 22 EU Member States, facilitating employment and acting as the backbone Europe’s manufacturing and construction sectors.
Europe accounts for 13.8% of global crude steel production, exporting 16.3 million tonnes, and imports 25.6 million tonnes of finished steel annually, much of it from Asia. This dynamic trade landscape, coupled with demand from sectors like construction, automotive, and renewable energy, is reshaping how steel producers and processors manage their operations, especially when it comes to material handling equipment.
Forklift trucks - the unsung heroes of steel
At the heart of steel mills and processing plants, forklifts for the metal industry are working harder than ever. From moving massive steel coils to transporting heavy slabs, these machines are essential for maintaining productivity and meeting tight production quotas.
The construction industry remains the largest consumer of steel in Europe, using 35.5% of finished steel products. However, demand is growing in the automotive and mechanical engineering sectors. Globally, emerging markets like lithium-ion battery production and solar panel manufacturing are further fuelling the need for efficient materials handling equipment. For example, the production of lithium-ion battery packs requires metal battery boxes. While the production of solar panels requires large quantities of steel tubing, bars, beams, and girders.
Steel industry forklift electrification
In recent years, there has been a push to electrify heavy equipment and reduce emissions in metals operations. Electric equipment has historically struggled to meet the productivity demands of these operations, and the characteristics some of these applications (including intense heat) may not be the best match for electric-powered equipment. However, there are specific applications that present opportunities to electrify fleets. Applications with high-capacity lift trucks moving cooled product have great potential for electrification.
One Hyster customer, for example, is a global steel manufacturer which has successfully deployed electric forklifts in its indoor facilities, while another, a prefabricated metal building producer, is exploring electric trucks for moving coils and beams in cleaner, cooler environments. Freight and rail yards are also seeing the benefits of electrification, especially for handling cooled, finished products. The recently expanded Hyster® J10-18XD range of lithium-ion powered forklifts, with capacities up to 18 tonnes offers ICE-like performance but zero exhaust emissions, proving a great fit for this type of application.
While the market for electrified reachstackers is largely still in the product development phase, the use of traditional, ICE-powered reachstackers in steel distribution is an emerging option.
Managing tough handling challenges
Globally, some parts of the steel industry are experiencing demand for the production of larger steel coils. These larger formats help reduce operational downtime for processors and manufacturers, but they also demand more from forklifts and reachstackers.
Using Hyster ReachStackers can simplify handling of wider, heavier coils and provide the extended reach necessary to place them on a double deep rail car, or a widely staged semi-trailer flatbed. Hyster Reachstackers can also be retrofitted with attachments designed specifically to aid in handling these materials.
A Hyster ReachStacker equipped with a specialist attachment like a coil grab or hook, or a slab magnet or tong, can be a powerful solution for steel distribution.
- Coil hooks: Ideal for positioning coils on flat rail cars, optional integrated rail lid lifters are available.
- Coil grabs: Suited for loading walled gondola cars with precision.
- Slab magnets: Efficient for stacking and loading ambient temperature slabs without spacers.
- Slab tongs: Designed for transporting hot slabs and loading flat rail cars without dunnage.
These attachments give businesses options, so the solution can be selected that best supports productivity, precision, and minimised downtime.
To aid operations with lift truck fleets that handle both coils and slabs and reduce the costs associated with an oversized lift truck fleet, tool changing technology has also been developed that eliminates the cumbersome, arduous process of manually changing attachments.
Operators can change non-powered attachments like coil hooks or mechanical slab tongs by simply driving into position and completing the switch from the operator compartment, with no need to leave their seat. For items that require power, such as electricity for slab magnets or hydraulic power for clamping or rotating attachments, operators need to briefly leave the cab for a simple, plug-and-play workflow with quick-connecting fittings to connect the power supply. These systems help streamline workflows and boost uptime—critical in high-volume steel operations.
Hyster forklifts and ReachStackers for handling steel
From electric Hyster forklifts to high-capacity Hyster ReachStackers and smart attachment systems, investing in the right solutions for steel handling can help keep businesses competitive in a fast-changing market. Explore the range of steel industry options with a local Hyster dealer. Or learn more here.
