A telescopic handler is similar to a forklift. It has one telescopic boom which extends both upwards and forwards from the truck, and a counterweight located in the rear. It works much more like a crane than a forklift. The boom can be outfitted with various types of attachments. The most common attachment is pallet forks, but the operator could also attach a lift table, bucket or muck grab. Also known as a telehandler, this particular type of machinery is normally utilized in agriculture and industry.
When it is hard for a conventional forklift to access places, a telehandler is commonly used to move loads. Telehandlers are normally used to unload pallets from within a trailer. They are also more handy compared to a crane for carrying loads onto other high locations and rooftops.
There is just one major limitation in using telehandlers. Despite counterweights at the rear, the weight-bearing boom could cause the equipment to destabilize as it extends. Therefore, the lifting capacity decreases as the distance between the center of the load and the front of the wheels increases.
The Matbro company developed telehandlers within England. Their design was based on articulated cross country forklifts used in forestry. Initial versions had a centrally mounted boom on the front and a driver's cab on the rear section, but today the most popular design has a rigid chassis with a side cab and rear mounted boom.