Konecranes deploys its first electric forklifts in North America to Church Brothers Farms

Konecranes has deployed two E-VER 17-1200 C electric forklifts at Church Brothers Farms’receiving, shipping and cold storage facility in California, marking the first deployment of Konecranes electric forklifts in North America. Delivered in Q1 2026, the trucks have been commissioned and are now in active daily operation.

Church Brothers Farms is a grower-shipper of fresh vegetables that farms and harvests thousands of acres across California, Arizona and northern and central Mexico. At its receiving and cold storage facility in Salinas, California, the two Konecranes electric forklifts offload incoming deliveries and move products into warehousing and refrigerated storage areas. The new units support daily material flows with zero local tailpipe emissions during operation and lower operating costs compared to diesel-powered alternatives. They also support Church Brothers’ broader efforts to reduce emissions during operations while modernizing handling across its facilities.

“Keeping high volumes of fresh produce flowing smoothly through our shipping and cold storage areas is essential to our business. The quality of the Konecranes electric forklifts and distributor Total Industries’ strong local support were appealing selling points for us, and these machines will help us maintain reliable operations while supporting our shift to lower-emission handling,” says Mike Manderson, Vice President of Warehousing, Distribution and Fulfillment, Church Brothers Farms.

The new lift trucks combine high performance with strong safety and ergonomic standards, ensuring a comfortable and efficient operator environment. Equipped with the TRUCONNECT Premium+ package, Church Brother Farms can monitor the hydraulic oil condition and contamination forboth forklifts, extending the oil life by up to three times longer. This helps reduce maintenance costs, increase uptime, and lower overall environmental impact.

“We’re proud to support North America’s first Konecranes electric forklift deployment at Church Brothers Farms. With deep experience supporting agricultural and produce-handling operations across the United States, Total Industries will provide ongoing service support to help keep this fleet running at peak performance,” says Steve Huckbody, Solutions Consultant, Total Industries.

“Delivering the first Konecranes electric forklifts to Church Brothers Farms marks a major step forward for electric material handling in the U.S. With support from our distributor Total Industries, we were able to bring the right local expertise and on-the-ground service capability to the project,” says Tobias Nilsson, Regional Sales Manager North America, Lift Trucks, Konecranes.

This agreement is part of Ecolifting,Konecranes’ comprehensive step-by-step roadmap to zero tailpipe emissions that supports the decarbonization of port operations. Our solutions range from renewable diesel-powered drives, to hybrid and fully-electrified fleets, and emerging options like hydrogen, all designed to meet the needs of each customer today and for the future.

A strong focus on customers and commitment to business growth and continuous improvement make Konecranes a material handling industry leader. This is underpinned by investments in digitalization and technology, plus our work to make material flows more efficient with solutions that support the decarbonization of the economy and advance circularity and safety.