When Was the Pallet Inverter Invented?
The pallet inverter, as the free-standing piece of equipment we all know and love today, was invented in 1976 out of some hydraulics pinched from a dustcart.
What Came Before the Pallet Inverter?
Since pallets were invented, there has pretty much always been the need to invert them. Before the pallet inverter, machines called “tipplers” were used to invert a load, but they were often just rudimentary machines built in garages.As forklifts become more and more popular, attachments were developed to invert the forks 180 degrees as well.
How Have Pallet Inverters Evolved?
Pallet inverters have adapted in many ways to meet the varied needs of the material handling world.
The first pallet inverters were used for sacked goods like fertilizer and animal feed. The pallet inverter was used to retrieve ripped sacks at the bottom, greatly cutting pallet losses and containing spills.
The next necessary innovation was creating pallet inverters that could be loaded at floor level. Enclosing the mechanical parts also helped make pallet inverters more hygienic for the pharmaceutical industry.
Why Do We Need Pallet Inverters
Palletized loads need to be inverted. Whether you’re retrieving a broken pallet or material, changing pallets, or meeting manufacturing requirements, pallet inverters are the perfect machine for the job.
Interested in learning more about the history of material handling equipment? Check out some of our previous posts!