75 years of electric drive at STILL: A success story of electric mobility since 1949

When Hans Still first introduced the EGS 1000 to the market in 1949, he showed true pioneering spirit: His electric forklift truck freed companies from fossil fuels for the first time ever. More milestones followed, like the STILL R 9 in the mid-1960s and the R 50 series in 1977, which made its mark in history as the “VW Golf of electric forklift trucks.”

“Over 70 years of experience in electric mobility – that’s what we bring to the table,” Gerald Strugg, Senior Product Manager for electric forklift trucks at STILL proudly claims. He is especially impressed by the RX 60-25/35 introduced in 2019: “When we first developed an electric forklift truck that outperformed the diesel forklift truck – that was a real breakthrough.”

STILL has always had its finger on the pulse of what customers need. So, what drives the market today? “Sustainability, cost efficiency, and competition that only gets tougher,” Strugg explains. The answer to this is a bold strategy: “We are moving away from standardized solutions and instead developing products that are precisely tailored to different customer requirements.”

One size fits all – that mantra is a thing of the past. Flexibility and customer focus are the new benchmarks. STILL aims to meet this objective with two product lines – the Classic Line and the Excellence Line.

As it has always done, the Hamburg-based intralogistics specialist is listening to what customers want and responding to the current shift in their needs. After a long phase in the intralogistics industry of demand for forklift trucks and systems that were faster, more powerful and more sophisticated than the last, in order to meet increasing and ever more complex customer requirements, another market segment is now coming to the fore. These customers want products that focus on what is essential.

Demand is continuously growing for cost-effective forklift trucks that are available quickly and are intended for less demanding applications and shorter operating times. “In 2024, everything no longer turns on ‘higher, faster, further,’” Strugg explains. “You don’t need lots of features if you aren’t running a three-shift operation or pushing your forklift truck to the limit in a demanding environment.”

STILL’s strategic response to this new market reality is the Classic Line. With the RCE 25-30, which successfully launched in 2024, and its recently introduced “little brother,” the RCE 15-20, STILL now offers impressive alternatives for a price-sensitive segment – without compromising on the characteristic STILL quality.

“Thanks to the Classic Line , we now offer fitting solutions for yet another target group,” Strugg says. This target group comprises small and medium-sized businesses that do not need a 24/7 high-performance solution. They may be carpenters who want to load their products throughout the day, hardware stores, workshops, farms or small businesses loading their trucks in the afternoon – the Classic Line offers a solution made for them.

“We want to fill a gap in our product offering,” Strugg explains. The aim is to expand the portfolio and broaden STILL’s market position. “The RCE will put us on some customers’ radars for the first time.”

Two lines with two clear missions: While the Classic Line is an impressive and smart choice for small and medium-sized businesses with moderate requirements, the Excellence Line is setting new standards in the premium segment. “Europe is a global leader in sustainability,” Strugg stresses. “Our customers expect full transparency these days – from the carbon footprint to the production and use phase. The Excellence Line is the answer to this.”

This answer goes far beyond technical innovation: STILL is developing a holistic sustainability concept with the Excellence Line. Environmentally friendly production, the steady shift to renewable energy in production and a well-thought-through circular economy form the pillars of a new industrial era. The coming RX series will make this vision a reality – Strugg and the development team are working hard to achieve this. “We are not just making a new product,” he says. “We are making a statement about how to do sustainable intralogistics.”

Seventy-five years after the trailblazing EGS 1000, STILL is once again showing what the company is made of: its ability to capture the Zeitgeist and translate that into innovative solutions. “Global competition is fierce,” Strugg concludes. “European companies need to remain innovative and agile to stay on top.”

With the Classic Line and Excellence Line, STILL has paved the way for the future. This dual strategy is more than just a response to changing market conditions – it is the latest chapter in a success story with one thing that has made it shine since 1949: the courage to blaze new trails. Just like the revolutionary EGS 1000.