Rigging-Busters runs a forklift moving service in Windsor and across Essex County. We haul forklifts and lift trucks between plants, dealers, auctions and warehouses, and our crew uses heavy-capacity forklifts to unload, carry and set machinery for the region’s tool, die and mould shops and auto suppliers.
Each job is planned from the truck’s data plate and both sites: the right trailer, enough tie-downs, any permits, and rigging when a machine needs more than forks. We also run forklift hauls along Highway 401; cross-border hauls to Michigan are quoted case by case.
- Industrial only: lift trucks, machines and plant equipment; no household, appliance or gym equipment moves.
- One crew: forklift transport, machine unloading, rigging and set-in-place.
- Fast quotes: replies within 2–4 business hours.
- Service area: Windsor, Essex County and Chatham-Kent; cross-border hauls to Michigan are quoted case by case.
Want a ballpark before you call? Our Heavy Lifting & Moving Calculator gives a rough price range in a few clicks.
or give a call +1-519-800-5124
Forklift Transport in Windsor: Moving a Lift Truck Site to Site
A forklift is heavier than it looks, because the counterweight that balances its load travels with it. So the plan starts with the truck itself, then the route. A typical forklift transport job around Windsor runs like this:
- Data plate and photos: make, model, the weight and rated capacity from the plate, the lowered mast height and any attachments.
- Fuel and condition: electric, propane or diesel, and whether it drives, steers and brakes. If the unit doesn’t run, tell us; we confirm the method before quoting.
- Trailer choice: a tilt-deck, beavertail or lowboy picked for the truck’s weight and mast height, so the load rides as low as possible.
- Prep at pickup: forks lowered and tilted back, the battery connector unplugged on electric trucks, the propane cylinder valve closed, and loose attachments strapped.
- Loading and tie-down: the truck goes up the deck and is chained at its tie-down points; Ontario’s load-securement standard (NSC Standard 10) calls for at least four tie-downs on wheeled equipment over 4,500 kg.
- The haul: routed around posted roads, with City, County or MTO permits in place when the load is oversize.
- Drop-off: the truck is unloaded and parked where you want it, forks down and keys handed over.
Lift Trucks We Haul
- Electric counterbalance forklifts, moved with the battery in place and secured
- Propane and diesel forklifts, including heavy-capacity yard trucks
- Reach trucks and order pickers from distribution centres
- Pallet stackers and electric pallet jacks that travel with the fleet
- Forklifts with side-shifters, fork positioners, clamps or fork extensions
When the Forklift Doesn’t Run
A truck with a dead battery, a seized mast or failed brakes can’t climb a ramp under its own power, so the loading plan changes with the unit and the site. Tell us if the unit doesn’t run; we confirm the method before quoting. Photos of the truck and of where it sits help us answer faster.
Auction Pickups, Dealer Deliveries and Fleet Swaps
Auction buyers usually get a fixed removal window, and dealers and rental fleets often move units at short notice, so we book the trailer and crew around your dates. A forklift company returning a truck to its shop, a plant moving forklift fleets between buildings, or a buyer collecting a used unit from a closing plant gets the same plan, priced per trip.
or give a call +1-519-800-5124
Moving Machinery With Forklifts in Windsor
The same heavy-capacity forklifts do much of the machine work for Windsor-Essex manufacturers. Invest WindsorEssex counts 250-plus machine, tool, die and mould manufacturers and more than 500 automation-related firms in the region, and their machines rarely arrive at a perfect dock.
- Machine deliveries: a new machining centre, surface grinder or EDM unit unloaded from the flatbed and carried inside
- Mould and die handling: mould bases and die sets moved between the toolroom, the press floor and the truck
- In-plant moves: machines shifted to a new bay during a retool, then set on skates for the final metres
- Loading out: sold or surplus machines loaded onto the buyer’s trailer
Before a machine is lifted, your licensed electricians disconnect the power; we take it from there and leave the machine on its new footprint, ready for them to reconnect.
Forklift Delivery and Unloading Service
Our forklift delivery service is for the day a machine shows up on a flatbed and nobody on site has a forklift big enough: we meet the truck, unload it and set the machine where you want it, inside and out of the weather. Tell us the delivery window and the carrier’s trailer type, because a step-deck and a closed van unload differently.
Equipment We Bring
- Heavy-capacity forklifts with fork extensions for long or deep machines
- Machinery skates and pallet jacks for the last few metres
- Hydraulic gantries and jack-and-roll where forks can’t reach
- Tilt-deck, beavertail and lowboy trailers matched to the load
- Chains, binders and edge protection for every tie-down
- Crane lifts through licensed crane partners when forks are not enough
Heavier lifts, pits and tight bays go to our industrial rigging services in Windsor, and full machine relocations to our machinery movers in Windsor. Truckloads that only need lifting off and on are covered by heavy equipment loading and unloading in Windsor.
Forklift Hauling Permits and Routes in Windsor and Essex County
Most forklifts ride within legal width and height on a low deck, so a typical lift-truck haul needs no permit. Big yard forklifts, tall masts and wide attachments can push a load past the limits, and then the road owner decides what is needed:
- City of Windsor: an oversize load on City streets needs a moving permit from the Engineering Department, and the route approval form goes to Traffic Operations at least 72 hours before the move.
- County of Essex: a County moving permit applies to loads wider than 2.6 m, higher than 4.15 m, longer than 12.5 m (14.65 m for a semi-trailer) or overweight; the County asks for at least 10 business days’ notice and normally takes 7 to 10 business days to process.
- Province: Highway 401, including the Herb Gray Parkway that carries it to the Gordie Howe International Bridge, and Highway 3 are provincial, so an oversize load there needs an MTO single-trip permit, applied for at least 5 business days ahead.
Spring brings one more limit: some County roads restrict axle loads to 5 tonnes per axle while the signs are up, a period that includes March 1 to April 30. A heavy forklift bound for a farm or greenhouse road may need another route or date.
Forklift Hauls Between Windsor and Michigan
Windsor-Essex sits less than a mile from the U.S. market, so a lift truck can easily change hands across the river: a forklift sold to a Michigan plant, or one bought at a Detroit-area auction. Cross-border hauls are quoted case by case; a confirmed haul crosses on the Ambassador Bridge or the Gordie Howe International Bridge, open to traffic since July 2026. Your customs broker clears the shipment, so send their contact with the request.
or give a call +1-519-800-5124
Forklift Moving Cost in Windsor: What Sets the Price
Forklift transport is priced per trip once we know the truck and both sites. What moves the number:
- The truck: weight, width and lowered mast height, which decide the trailer
- Condition: a unit that drives up the deck loads faster than one that doesn’t run
- How many units: several forklifts on one trip cost less per truck than separate runs
- Distance and route: across Windsor, out to Leamington or Chatham-Kent, up the 401, or over the border
- Permits and timing: oversize permits, spring axle limits, evening or weekend work
- Extra work: unloading and placing a machine, rigging, or short-term storage between sites
Estimates are free and quotes are in Canadian dollars. For a rough range first, try the Heavy Lifting & Moving Calculator.
Service Area: Windsor, Essex County and Chatham-Kent
We cover all of Windsor, from the east-end industrial land along Lauzon Parkway to the west side off the Ojibway Parkway. In Tecumseh, Oldcastle sits on Highway 401 and is split by Walker Road (County Road 11); the Town calls it a significant industrial centre for the County.
Across Essex County we haul to LaSalle, Amherstburg, Essex, Lakeshore, Kingsville and Leamington, and east to Chatham-Kent. In Leamington, greenhouses cover nearly 8 square kilometres, which the Municipality of Leamington calls the largest concentration of greenhouses in North America (NASA Earth Observatory, January 2026). We move lift trucks between those farms, packing houses and dealer shops along Highway 3.
Key Towns We Serve Around Windsor
| City/Town | Province | Country |
|---|---|---|
| Windsor | Ontario | Canada |
| LaSalle | Ontario | Canada |
| Tecumseh | Ontario | Canada |
| Amherstburg | Ontario | Canada |
| Essex | Ontario | Canada |
| Lakeshore | Ontario | Canada |
| Leamington | Ontario | Canada |
| Kingsville | Ontario | Canada |
| Chatham-Kent | Ontario | Canada |
Further afield, we haul forklifts along Highway 401 to London (see our forklift moving service in London) and on to Hamilton (see our forklift moving service in Hamilton).
or give a call +1-519-800-5124
Why Windsor Plants and Warehouses Call Us
- Industrial work only: forklifts, lift trucks, machines and plant equipment.
- One crew from truck to footprint: forklift transport, machine unloading, rigging and set-in-place, with no hand-offs between contractors.
- Planned around production: retools, model changeovers and shutdown weeks are booked around your dates.
- Permits and the border handled: City, County and MTO permits, and Michigan hauls planned with your customs broker.
- Fast answers: quote replies within 2–4 business hours.
- Insured: liability and workers’ compensation insurance (WSIB in Ontario), with a certificate of insurance on request.
A good fit: forklift and lift-truck transport between plants, dealers, auctions and warehouses; fleet swaps; machine deliveries that need unloading and placing; and plant moves or closures in Windsor-Essex.
Not a fit: forklift rental, forklift repair, servicing or parts, forklift training, lumper or general freight unloading, and household moves, including appliances and gym or fitness equipment such as treadmills.
Have These Ready for an Exact Quote
Send these with your quote request and the answer comes back faster:
- What is moving: how many lift trucks and which types, or the machine that needs unloading
- A data plate photo for each forklift: make, model, weight and capacity
- Fuel and condition: electric, propane or diesel, and whether it runs
- Both addresses with access: dock or ramp, yard space, door and ceiling height
- Dates: pickup window, auction removal deadline or shutdown week
- Michigan deliveries: the U.S. address and your customs broker’s contact
or give a call +1-519-800-5124
Other Services in Windsor
More from our Windsor crew, or browse all our services in Windsor, Ontario:
- Heavy Equipment & Machinery Movers in Windsor, ON
- Heavy & Industrial Rigging Services in Windsor, ON
- CNC Machine Movers in Windsor, ON
- Heavy Equipment Loading & Unloading in Windsor, ON
- Auto and EV Plant Equipment Rigging in Windsor, ON
Location of our sales office:
3270 Electricity Dr, Windsor, ON N8W 5J1, Canada 👇
Windsor Forklift Moving and Transport: FAQ
It moves lift trucks and the loads they handle. In Windsor-Essex we load forklifts onto a trailer, chain them down, haul them to the new site and unload them, and we use heavy-capacity forklifts to unload, carry and place machinery. The work is industrial only: plants, dealers, auctions and warehouses, not household moves, appliances or gym equipment.
Machines a forklift can pick safely: machining centres, lathes, surface grinders, EDM units, mould bases, die sets, press brakes, packaging machines and crated equipment, the everyday load of Windsor tool, die and mould shops. When a machine is too heavy, too tall or has no fork pockets, we switch to skates, a gantry or a crane lift through a licensed crane partner, and say so in the quote.
We start from a data plate photo, which gives the weight and capacity, and the lowered mast height. The truck is prepared (forks down, battery unplugged or propane valve closed), driven up a tilt-deck or lowboy and chained down; Ontario’s load-securement standard calls for at least four tie-downs on wheeled equipment over 4,500 kg. At the new site it is unloaded and parked where you want it.
Tell us if the unit doesn’t run; we confirm the method before quoting. A forklift with a dead battery, a seized mast or failed brakes cannot drive up a ramp, so the loading plan depends on the unit, its weight and the pickup site. Send the data plate and a few photos of the truck and where it sits, and we will tell you what is possible.
Usually not, because most lift trucks travel within legal size on a low deck. A large yard forklift or a tall mast can make the load oversize. Then City of Windsor streets need a moving permit, with route approval sent at least 72 hours ahead, County of Essex roads need at least 10 business days’ notice, and Highway 401 or Highway 3 need an MTO permit.
Cross-border forklift hauls between Windsor-Essex and Detroit or elsewhere in Michigan are quoted case by case and use the Ambassador Bridge or the Gordie Howe International Bridge, which opened to traffic in July 2026. Your customs broker clears the shipment, so send their contact, the U.S. delivery address and the truck’s data plate with your request, and we plan the crossing together with the haul.
Yes. Greenhouses cover nearly 8 square kilometres in Leamington, which the Municipality of Leamington calls the largest concentration in North America, and packing houses there rely on lift trucks. We haul forklifts between farms, packing houses and dealer shops along Highway 3, and we check County roads for spring axle limits, which can rule out a heavy truck on a signed road from March 1 to April 30.
It is priced per trip. The cost depends on the truck’s weight and size, whether it runs, how many units travel together, the distance and route, any permits or border crossing, and timing such as evening work. Estimates are free; our Heavy Lifting and Moving Calculator gives a rough range, and an exact quote comes within 2–4 business hours.
No. We are a forklift moving service, not a dealer: we do not rent, sell, repair or service lift trucks, supply parts or run forklift training. For forklift service in Windsor, such as repairs and maintenance, call a dealer’s service department or a mobile forklift service. When the truck has to travel to the shop or back to a customer, that haul is the job we do.
All of Windsor, from the east-end plants off Lauzon Parkway to the west side by the Ojibway Parkway, plus Tecumseh and Oldcastle, LaSalle, Amherstburg, Essex, Lakeshore, Kingsville, Leamington and Chatham-Kent. We also haul forklifts along Highway 401 to London and the rest of Southwestern Ontario. Hauls across the border to Detroit and Michigan are quoted case by case.
