Raymond Celebrates 90th Anniversay with Open House

The Raymond Corporation, Greene, N.Y., is celebrating its 90th anniversary in the material-handling industry. From the company’s invention of the first hydraulic hand pallet truck in 1934 to its current advancements in lift truck automation, Raymond has pioneered leading-edge innovations that improve material-handling productivity, reliability, and efficiency.

“In the past 90 years, the demands on warehouses and distribution centers have dramatically changed,” said Chuck Pascarelli, president of sales and marketing. “Facilities are expected to perform more efficiently and be more productive than ever. In response to this, Raymond has designed increasingly sophisticated lift trucks that help producers and shippers reduce costs, increase throughput, improve order picking selectivity, and store more products in smaller and higher spaces.”                                

Raymond began producing lift trucks in 1922 when George Raymond Sr. purchased Lyon Iron Works, a small foundry in Greene, N.Y. Since then, the company has invented and patented technologies that have become industry standards, such as the hydraulic hand pallet truck, the double-faced pallet, the narrow aisle lift truck and the Reach-Fork truck, a narrow aisle concept first introduced by Raymond in the early 1950s to help solve a grocer’s need to go higher in less space. Today, Raymond’s innovative narrow aisle concept has been adopted as a standard and is in nearly every distribution center in the world.

Products currently available include the Raymond 8000 series pallet trucks featuring PowerSteer, the 7000 Series Reach-Fork trucks with Eco-Performance, automated lift trucks, fuel cell-powered lift trucks, and the iWAREHOUSE warehouse optimization system.   

Raymond will celebrate its anniversary with an open house on Sat., Oct. 6 from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. at its headquarters in Greene, N.Y. The public is invited to tour the manufacturing facility and see how Raymond lift trucks are made.