A strong Dutch family business
Strong, weak, young, old: everyone should be able to lift heavy things without getting back complaints. That is the mission of Tiller® and the reason Herman van der Helm came up with the idea of developing the liftmobile. When Herman himself suffered back complaints, he discovered that no device existed yet that could take over lifting. So he invented one himself. His daughter Laura van der Helm, an Industrial Product Design graduate, lent a hand. Together they designed the liftmobile: an electric handtruck with a lifting function. By 2009, they had reached the stage where the now patented liftmobile was ready for the market and met all safety standards and requirements. They introduced it under the name Tiller®. Over 15 years later, Herman and Laura are still together at the helm of the family business, which now also includes Herman's son Victor.
How it began: the inventor tells
In my agricultural mechanisation business, we used a hoist, stacker and forklift for heavy lifting and hoisting. To lift and mount parts with these, space was needed. From the stacker, the legs get often in the way and from the forklift, the bulky counterweight was the problem. Space was limited, therefor we were forced to lift and mount the heavy parts by hand. This caused back problems that occasionally made me fall out and unable to work.
Don't do it, very dangerous!
So I went looking for some kind of handtruck that could lift. This was nowhere to be bought and when browsing the patent database, I found an idea from 1962 by an American. An electric lifting handtruck. I contacted him to see if he could supply it. "Don't do it, very dangerous!" he said. I decided to build one myself and when it was finished, I knew what he meant by 'dangerous'. As soon as the load went up, the handtruck could move uncontrollably forwards or backwards. It would either hit your shins or almost the entire load would lean on your arms and thus on your back. In the worst case, this would cause the load to fall on you. I did not want to mount legs in front or behind, nor did I want a counterweight. Then I would lose all manoeuvrability advantages.
Solution? Or not?
What to do? A mechanical brake seemed to be the solution. I had two pipes (like on a pedal kart) pressed onto the tyre and then I could safely lift the load without any unexpected movements. I discovered that it was very easy to keep balance the handtruck with load while lifting. Only now it was impossible to drive towards the workbench to put the lifted load on it. So I made the tubes driveable with an electric motor, while maintaining the brake action. The brake disengages automatically when the load is in the lowest position, so you have an ordinary handtruck with which to move goods quickly while pushing.
Global patent
Thus, the liftmobile was born and I have worked with it for years. It is highly manoeuvrable, needs no support legs and no counterweight either. We are right in between a stacker and forklift and use your own natural sense of balance, as you do on a bicycle. The two electric motors with drives are necessary for this design. They ensure the safe use of the liftmobile, but also provide a substantial price. A high-end product, in other words.
When my daughter Laura graduated from the Industrial Product Design course, she turned it into a beautiful design and marketable product. A global patent has been given on it.
Origin of the name Tiller®
In English, tiller means 'tiller', the stick that operates the rudder of a boat or ship. A nice analogy with the industrial application of the electric liftmobile, which provides direction during users' daily work. With such a name, Tiller® was ready to enter the international market, helmsman Herman van der Helm thought. By the way, the term 'helmsman' is a nice quip to the family surname.
Liftmobile is Made in Holland
Although this electric liftmobile is used in several continents, it is a truly Dutch product. Every Tiller®-liftmobile is built at our premises in The Hague, so we can guarantee the quality for 100%. Tiller® offers excellent service and warranty, including user instructions on delivery to ensure you get the most out of your Tiller® experience.
Awards given to Tiller®
The many awards and certificates that Tiller® has received in the field of innovation and healthy working underline that users recognise and appreciate the power of the device.
Health and Safety tip from Healthy Transport
The liftmobile won all kinds of awards in the field of innovation and healthy working. Think of the Health and Safety tip. This is an award from sector institute Healthy Transport for innovative products that improve working conditions in the transport and logistics sector. In their report, the jury called the liftmobile "a valuable lifting aid" and the combination of lifting function and trolley "innovative".
Safety Works Better Innovation Award
Tiller® was also awarded the 2nd prize of the Safety Works Better Innovation Award. This Award is an incentive prize for companies that demonstrate that innovation is necessary, possible and required.
Other awards Tiller® received for the liftmobile we are proud of:
- the third prize in the Consumer Products category of the Accenture Innovation Awards (2012)
- de Prix spécial du jury, Lumières de l'innovation (CAPEB France, 2012)
- the Technishow Innovation Award (2012)
- the gold medal at Salon des Inventions (Geneva, 2011)
- No. 58 in SMEs innovation top 100 (2011)
- Winner pitch competition “Bij ons in de BV” (2010)
- 1 of the 10 nominees for the Herman Wijffels Innovation Award (2010)
International entrepreneurship
Soon after its market introduction in the Netherlands, the liftmobile also entered the international market. Since then, the liftmobile has proved its worth internationally and the liftmobile designed by Tiller® is available in many countries including Germany, France, Switzerland, Italy, Denmark, Japan and Poland.
Curious about all the possibilities of the Tiller®-liftmobile?
Then take a look at our product overview
Do you have questions or want us to think with you?
Please feel free to contact us
