why do some people say hilo instead of forklift

In the bustling environments of American manufacturing plants and distribution centers, a linguistic divide often emerges. On one side of the loading dock, a worker might climb aboard a "forklift." On the other, a veteran operator might refer to the exact same machine as a "Hi-Lo" (often spelled Hilo or High-Low).

To the uninitiated, this might seem like a simple case of regional slang. However, the term "Hi-Lo" is a linguistic relic that traces the mechanical evolution of material handling, the branding wars of the early 20th century, and the specific industrial geography of the United States. Understanding why people say "Hi-Lo" requires delving into the history of hydraulic lift technology and the rise of the Michigan automotive powerhouse.

1. The Functional Descriptor: What’s in a Name?

At its most basic level, the term "Hi-Lo" is a literal description of the machine’s primary function. Before the standardization of the term "forklift truck" by organizations like the Industrial Truck Association (ITA) and ISO, machines were named for what they did.

Vertical Versatility

A forklift is defined by its ability to perform two distinct tasks:

Low: Picking up a load from the ground or floor level.

Hi: Lifting that load to a height—whether onto a truck bed, a shelf, or a stack.

In the early days of industrial mechanization (circa 1910–1930), most equipment was specialized. You had "low-lift" pallet jacks that only cleared the ground by a few inches to move goods, and you had "tiering machines" or "stackers" that were often stationary or limited in movement. When machines were developed that could both transport a load over a distance (low) and stack it at height (high), the descriptive nickname "Hi-Lo" became a shorthand for this "all-in-one" capability.

2. The Branding Hypothesis: The Clark Tructractor Legacy

While "Hi-Lo" is descriptive, many historians and industry veterans point to a specific corporate origin. Similar to how "Kleenex" became the universal word for facial tissue or "Xerox" for photocopying, "Hi-Lo" is widely believed to be a proprietary eponym—a brand name that became the generic term for the product.

The Clark Equipment Company

In 1917, the Clark Equipment Company in Buchanan, Michigan, developed the "Tructractor," arguably the first internal combustion-powered material handling truck. By the 1920s, they introduced models with hydraulic lifting capabilities.

Legend in the Midwest suggests that a specific model or a series of trucks were marketed under the name "Hi-Lo." While official marketing brochures of the era often used the terms "Truclift" or "Tiering Tructractor," the internal shorthand among the engineers and the Michigan-based customers—largely in the burgeoning automotive industry—solidified into "Hi-Lo."

Because Clark was a dominant force in the early 20th-century market, their terminology became the standard for the workers who operated them, eventually spreading through the supply chain.

3. The "Hi-Lo" Geographical Footprint

One of the most fascinating aspects of the term is its regionality. If you use the word "Hi-Lo" in California or Texas, you might get a confused look. If you use it in Detroit, Michigan, or Toledo, Ohio, it is the only word people use.

The Automotive Connection

The term is most heavily concentrated in the "Rust Belt" or the industrial Midwest. The reason is rooted in the history of the Ford and GM assembly lines.

Integration: In the 1930s and 40s, the automotive industry was the largest adopter of forklift technology to manage the massive influx of parts.

Standardization: As these plants developed training manuals and safety protocols, "Hi-Lo" was the term adopted on the shop floor.

Migration: As automotive workers moved or as the industry expanded, they took the terminology with them to parts of the Northeast (like Buffalo and parts of New Jersey).

Today, "Hi-Lo" remains a badge of industrial identity in the Midwest. Calling it a forklift in a Detroit engine plant is a quick way to identify yourself as an outsider.

4. Technical Evolution: From Platform to Fork

To understand the shift in naming, we must look at the technical transition of the machine itself. The early "Hi-Lo" machines didn't always have forks.

Platform vs. Forks

Initially, many of these machines used a load platform. The operator would manually slide a crate onto the platform, and the machine would lift it. When the "fork" attachment (the two metal tines we see today) was popularized—primarily by companies like Towmotor and Yale—the term "forklift" began to gain traction as a more accurate technical description of the interface.

However, in the Midwest, where the machines had been in use for a decade prior to the total dominance of the fork-style carriage, the name "Hi-Lo" was already "baked in." The technology changed, but the name stayed.

5. Comparative Terminology: Global and Regional Variations

The "Hi-Lo" vs. "Forklift" debate is just one example of how material handling equipment is named based on culture and mechanics.

6. The 2026 Perspective: Does the Name Still Matter?

In 2026, as we move toward fully autonomous forklifts and AI-integrated material handling, the term "Hi-Lo" is becoming a vintage descriptor. However, it still holds technical weight in specific sectors.

Fleet Management and Maintenance

In many older Michigan-based facilities, maintenance logs and asset tags still use the abbreviation "HL" (Hi-Lo) followed by a unit number. For a maintenance technician, the term is functional. It differentiates the "High-Low" (a counterbalance truck) from a "Pallet Jack" (a low-lift only) or a "Reach Truck."

Safety and Training

From an OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) standpoint, the terminology is irrelevant—they are all classified as Powered Industrial Trucks (PIT). However, trainers often use the local vernacular ("Hi-Lo") to build rapport with operators and ensure that safety instructions resonate within the local culture of the plant.

7. Conclusion: A Linguistic Industrial Landmark

The reason some people say "Hi-Lo" instead of "forklift" is a combination of mechanical literalism, corporate branding history, and regional industrial pride. It serves as a reminder that technology isn't just about the hardware; it’s about the people who use it. The term "Hi-Lo" captures a moment in time when the ability to lift a load high and transport it low was a revolutionary feat of engineering that transformed the American warehouse forever.

Whether you call it a Hi-Lo, a forklift, or a lift truck, the machine remains the undisputed backbone of global logistics. But if you’re standing on a dock in Detroit, you’d better call it a Hi-Lo.