About Adaptalift

About Adaptalift Our Brands Safety & Training Careers

10,500
units
nationwide
30
branches &
service centres
150
different
models
Australian family
owned & operated

Our History

Founded by Peter Whiffen & Margret Whiffen in 1982, Adaptalift started as Forklift Engineering Australia. Peter Whiffen, a mechanical engineer by trade, started designing and manufacturing forklift attachments & bespoke lifting solutions. As demand grew for the rental of these attachments to be supplied with forklifts, Adaptalift Forklift Rentals & Sales was born.

Renamed to Adaptalift Group in 2016, the company has grown rapidly to become the largest Australian privately owned and operated forklift company.

Case Studies

29 June 2020

Kalexpress/Sullivan Logistics overcome the challenges of maintaining their forklift fleet with Adaptalift Group

9 April 2020

Australian Sustainable Hardwoods Improve Flexibility and Efficiency with Hyster Forklifts

Adaptalift Ground Support Equipment (GSE) offers a full range of high quality ground support equipment to the aviation industry.

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Adaptalift Truck Rentals (ATR) offers a full range of truck and equipment rental solutions.

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Speedshield Technologies provides telemetry and engineering products and solutions to various industries and aftermarket applications including aviation, automotive, industrial, mining, and mobile fleet equipment.

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1979

The first of the AAL Group of companies, Adaptalift Hyster is established as Forklift Engineering Australia Pty Ltd, in Melbourne. Working to design and manufacture forklift attachments for the forklift and materials handling insdustry.
More about forklift attachments
1984

Forklift Engineering Australia Pty Ltd began trading as Adapt-A-Lift Rentals and Sales.
1988 - 1998

This decade sees the company experience extraordinary growth and development; branches are established in all Australian states.
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1999

Adapt-A-Lift makes BRW's Top 100 private companies list.
2003

Adapt-A-Lift Imports is formed trading as Combilift Australia, in order to import and distribute niche market materials handling products.
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2005

Speedshield Technologies is acquired to obtain a stable speed control system and to develop online fleet management products.
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2009

The acquisition of Hyster Australia sees Adapt-A-Lift Rentals and Sales become Adaptalift Hyster and triple its turnover.
Browse Hyster Forklifts
2011

Speedshield Technologies signs a supply contract with Hyster-Yale as global telemetry provider and establishes a distribution centre in the USA.
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2014

Adaptalift GSE enters the Aviation Ground Support Equipment market.
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2016

The Adaptalift Group is established as a vehicle to run all six companies; Adaptalift Hyster, Combilift Australia, Speedshield Technologies, Adaptalift imports, Peter Charles Investments and Adaptalift GSE.
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2018

Adaptalift Group is appointed as Yale dealer nationally, and is now an exclusive Karcher dealer. Adaptalift GSE successfully rolled out the Dnata contract.
More about Yale Browse Karcher Products