ForConstructionPros.com

Today's compact telehandlers are so versatile, so agile and so downright productive that they rival skid steers as the most useful piece of construction equipment on the jobsite.

Skid steers can dig more efficiently for longer periods of time than compact telehandlers, and full-size telehandlers can lift heavier loads to higher heights, but when it comes to material moving and lifting, a compact telehandler is hard to beat.

A staple in European agriculture for some time, compact telehandlers arrived on U.S. construction sites around 10 to 15 years ago. For European contractors, compact telehandlers have proven to be essential fleet machines for moving in and around tight spaces. Currently, the machines are very popular here on this side of the pond due to their versatility. Their popularity should continue to grow as manufacturers work on increasing the reach and capacity of these models. Models being introduced today offer a reach of around 19 feet, a barrier that manufacturers promise will be broken in the future.

Now one of the fastest-growing segments of the North American construction equipment market, compact telehandlers are used in landscaping, construction and municipal applications. They can place trees on slopes, extend sod over a freshly graded area, transport materials around the jobsite, load and unload trucks and the list goes on.

"Because of its versatility, telehandlers are often the first machine on many jobsites and the last to leave," says Luke Webber, senior market analyst at Genie Industries. "Their primary markets are construction and institutional. Common applications include parking garages, strip mall construction, new construction, multi-story construction, steel erecting, masonry, framing and landscaping."