Platform Trolleys and Heavy Duty Warehouse Trolleys

Buying advice for warehouse & platform trolleys

Which UK name means what

A platform trolley, also called a flatbed or flat trolley, is a flat deck with a push handle and no sides, for boxes, sacks and bulky loads on flat floors. A stock trolley, cash and carry trolley or order picking trolley adds a frame or basket so stacked cases stay put when the trolley turns, and is used for shelf filling and picking orders. If you mainly move loose boxes across a flat floor, a platform trolley is the simpler choice. For picking, see our picking trolleys.

Measure the aisle, then the corner

Measure your tightest aisle at floor level, between the lowest shelf edges, then take off a passing margin for a second trolley or a person. That is the widest trolley you can run. Length matters at the end of a bay: a long trolley needs more room to swing round a corner than a short one.

Five wheel trolleys turn on the spot

A pivoting centre wheel lets a long trolley rock onto its middle and turn on the spot instead of swinging wide, which saves floor space and knocks to racking in narrow aisles. If your aisles are wide and your trolleys short, four castors are enough.

Rated load and castors

Add up the heaviest single load you move in one go and choose a trolley rated above it. The margin protects the castors on thresholds and ramps, where the load spikes, and overloading is the most common reason castors wear out early. Bigger castors roll over thresholds and rough concrete more easily. Rubber grips rough or wet floors; polyurethane wears more slowly on smooth concrete and polished floors. Two fixed and two swivel castors is the usual layout: the fixed pair tracks straight and the swivel pair steers.

Zinc plated or powder coated

Zinc plating is the rust barrier, a thin layer of zinc bonded to the steel. Powder coating is a coloured, scratch resistant finish baked on top. Some trolleys have both: the zinc stops rust and the powder coat adds colour and protects the zinc from scuffs. Galvanising is a thicker zinc coat for steel that lives outdoors.