DC Velocity - NFSD 2019

FAST REFUELING TURNAROUND WITH PROPANE KEEPS NON-PROFIT PRODUCTIVE

Downtime isn’t an option for the Helping Harvest Food Bank.

The Reading, Pennsylvania-based nonprofit distributes more than seven million pounds of food annually to more than 300 charitable food partners across Pennsylvania’s Berks and Schuylkill counties.

At least half of the donations the food bank receives are fresh or frozen perishable goods, which require quick turnaround to be safely consumed by the 110,000 people who rely on food or meals from area food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters, after-school programs, and senior housing facilities. This means the food bank depends on the reliability of its propane-powered forklift.

Using a single propane-powered forklift, in addition to a small fleet of electric walk-behind pallet jacks, is more e;cient in meeting the food bank’s needs than using an all-electric fleet. With a 45,000

square-foot warehouse in addition to outdoor waste collection, the food bank needed a forklift fuel that required virtually no refueling time and could meet the non-stop supply-and-demand needs occurring both inside and outdoors. An electric forklift wouldn’t su;ce, because they require long periods of downtime to recharge and couldn’t be used in Reading’s humid climate, which can have more than 40 inches of rainfall annually.