Electric tug and manual handling glossary

An adjustable push face that fits on the front of a tug. It’s the standard coupling for pushing in a straight line: railed trolleys, bogies, kiln cars and production-line carriages. See how to choose a coupling.

An electric tug set up to push a load from behind rather than tow it. The operator walks behind and steers while the drive wheel does the work. Our Tractive Units are built for this.

Also called: electric pusher, power pusher

Another name for an electric tug. It runs on rechargeable batteries, so there are no fumes and very little noise, which is why it’s used indoors in hospitals, food plants and clean rooms. Read more.

Also called: battery tug, power tug

A coupling designed in-house for a load that none of the standard couplings suit. The tug stays the same; only the connection changes. Most of our jobs start with a standard coupling, and the rest get one made for them. Read more.

A powered industrial vehicle that carries or tows heavy, awkward loads around a site. Ours is the TBC30, built for the heaviest wheeled loads such as aircraft engines, plant and large cable drums.

Also called: load carrier

Moving large, heavy cable drums and reels around a factory or yard. Drums usually sit on a cradle or trolley, and a tug with a paper roll coupling or bespoke cradle moves them with one person. See electric tugs for paper and cable.

Wheels that swivel, as found on roll cages, trolleys and stillages. Every machine has a castors capacity, which is the heaviest wheeled load it moves across a floor. It’s lower than the rails capacity because there’s more rolling resistance. Browse electric tugs by weight.

Also called: on castors

A shorter version of a tug for tight cells, narrow aisles and clean rooms. The TP250 and TP500 both come as standard or Compact, with the same drive and the same capacities.

The part that connects the tug to the load. Choosing the right one matters as much as choosing the right tug. The standard couplings are the adjustable pushpad, roll cage coupling, fifth wheel channel, quick latch and paper roll coupling. Read how to choose an electric tug coupling.

Also called: hitch

A wheeled trolley that carries press dies or moulding tools. Pairing die trolleys with an electric tug cuts changeover time and takes the strain out of a heavy, precise move. See the mould changeover case study.

The pulling or pushing force a tug can put through its coupling, given in newtons (N). With capacity, it’s the best guide to what a machine can start and keep moving. Every product page lists it in the specification.

Also called: tractive effort

An electric tug used to move cars and vans that can’t or shouldn’t be driven: on assembly lines, in body shops and in showrooms. See electric tugs for automotive.

Also called: car mover, vehicle pusher

Using powered equipment to take the push and pull force out of moving heavy loads by hand. It’s one of the ways employers reduce manual handling risk. See pushing and pulling at work: what the regulations say.

An electric tug used to tow a single load or a train of trolleys or carts behind it. The TT100 is built for trains of roll cages, linen and catering trolleys.

Also called: electric towing tug, tow tug

A pedestrian-operated, battery-powered machine that moves wheeled or railed loads without lifting them. One person walks behind and steers while the tug does the pushing or pulling. It’s the umbrella term for every machine we make. Start with what is an electric tug? or see the range.

Also called: electric tugger, tugger

A forklift lifts; an electric tug moves a load that’s already on wheels or rails, without lifting it. For wheeled loads, a tug is usually smaller, quieter and easier to use in tight spaces. Read electric tug vs forklift.

A wheeled stand that carries an aircraft engine or large assembly during maintenance and build. Electric tugs move them round hangars and production halls with one operator. See moving aerospace engines.

Also called: engine skate

Our heaviest machines, the TP1000, TP2000 and TP3000, for bogies, rolling stock, trams and heavy plant. All three have power steering. See the Extra Heavy range.

A coupling that engages a channel or pin on the load, giving a firm connection for A-frames, stillages and wheeled machinery. Read more.

Also called: 5th wheel channel

A wheeled or railed car that carries ware through a kiln in ceramics production. Kiln cars are heavy and often run on rails, which makes them a natural job for an electric tug. See electric tugs for ceramics.

A general term for equipment that moves heavy loads across a floor. In our range that means the Extra Heavy tugs and the burden carrier.

Also called: heavy load mover

Any lifting, carrying, pushing or pulling of a load by hand. In the UK it’s covered by the Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992, which ask employers to avoid hazardous manual handling where they reasonably can. Read what the regulations say about pushing and pulling.

A truck that lifts a pallet a few centimetres and moves it. It’s ideal for pallets, but not for loads that are already on wheels. Read electric tug vs pallet truck.

Also called: pump truck, powered pallet truck

The coupling for round loads such as paper reels, drums and cable spools. Read more.

A tug driven by an operator who walks behind it rather than riding on it. Every Tractive Power machine is pedestrian-operated, which keeps the operator close to the load and in control of the stop. Read more.

Also called: pedestrian tug, walk-behind tug

Steering assistance on the heaviest machines, so one operator can steer a very heavy load accurately. It’s standard on the Extra Heavy range and on the TBC30.

Also called: power steered

A coupling that gives one standard connection point across a whole fleet of trolleys, so the operator can hook on and go. Read more.

An electric tug that pushes or pulls loads on rails: bogies, transfer trolleys, trams and rolling stock. Rails capacities are much higher than castors capacities. See electric tugs for rail and the TP2000.

Also called: rail pusher, rail tugger

Loads that run on fixed track: kiln cars, transfer trolleys, bogies and trams. Rolling resistance on rails is low, so the same tug can move a much heavier load on rails than on castors. Read more.

Also called: on rails

An option on some machines that lets the operator control the tug from a short distance, standing clear of the load. Arla Foods runs a remote-controlled TP500. See the Arla Foods case study.

A wheeled mesh cage used to move stock in retail, food and healthcare. Pushing loaded cages by hand all day is a common cause of strain injuries. See electric tugs for retail and healthcare.

Also called: roll container, cage trolley

A coupling that pushes a single roll cage or a nested train of cages as one load. Read more.

An electric tug used to move roll cages, one at a time or as a train. The TT50 handles single cages; the TT100 and TP500 take trains.

Also called: roll cage tug, cage pusher

A heavy-duty metal frame or cage, often on castors, used to store and move parts and extrusions. See moving stillages of plastic extrusions.

Our name for the TP machines, from the TP250 up to the TP3000. They’re pedestrian-operated electric pushers built in Cheddleton, Staffordshire.

Our compact range, the TT50 and TT100, small enough for corridors and lifts. See Tractive Tugs.

Our mid-weight range, the TP250 and TP500, each available as standard or Compact. See Tractive Units.

The smallest circle a tug can turn in. It decides whether a machine will work in a given aisle, corridor or lift. Every product page lists it in the specification.