Fleet Analysis in Intralogistics: How Motion-Mining® Shows that 30 % of a Forklift Fleet can be Saved
In many logistics and production environments, the actual utilization of a vehicle fleet remains hidden for a long time. The goal of the Motion-Mining® project was to objectively analyze actual usage and uncover optimization potential. The vehicles were used in typical processes such as transport, as well as put-away and retrieval.
The fleet analysis showed that just over 25% of the actual forklift capacity was being utilized.
In this project, ten reach trucks were analyzed over a period of four weeks.
Insight 1: Parallel usage remained well below available capacity
During a four-week measurement period, a maximum of 9 out of 10 forklifts were used simultaneously and only during rare peak phases. During normal operations, parallel usage was consistently lower. One vehicle was permanently tied up as a buffer without any operational need.
Insight 2: Short-term peaks do not represent a structural capacity requirement
Detailed analysis of peak usage shows that with 8–9 active forklifts, 1–2 vehicles were in use for less than 10 minutes each. These short trips can be shifted to existing forklifts through route optimization without requiring additional capacity.
The clear result: 30 % of the fleet can be eliminated
The results show that at least 3 out of 10 forklifts can be eliminated without risk. With professional fleet management, the potential is often even higher.
This overcapacity remains hidden in many companies. It only becomes visible through precise movement data.
Read more about this in our blog.
