A telescopic handler is like a forklift. It has one telescopic boom which extends both upwards and forwards from the truck, and a counterweight in the back. It functions more like a crane than a forklift. The boom could be equipped with a variety of attachments. The most common attachment is pallet forks, but the operator can also attach a muck grab, lift table or bucket. Also called a telehandler, this particular kind of equipment is usually utilized in agriculture and industry.
When it is hard for a conventional forklift to access areas, a telehandler is commonly used to move loads. Telehandlers are commonly utilized to unload pallets from within a trailer. They are also more practical than a crane for carrying loads onto other high locations and rooftops.
The telehandler has one major limitation. Despite counterweights at the rear, the weight-bearing boom can cause the equipment to destabilize while it extends. Therefore, the lifting capacity decreases when the distance between the front of the wheels and the centre of the load increases.
The Matbro company developed telehandlers within England. Their design was based mostly on articulated cross country forklifts used in forestry. First models had a driver's cab on the rear section and a centrally mounted boom on the front, but today the most popular design has a strong chassis along with a rear mounted boom and side cab.