Just give us the make and model: how scan-to-fit cab design works

When no template exists for your machine, we design a custom forklift cab around the truck itself. Send us the make and model. We visit your site, scan the machine and handle the engineering from there.

Many bespoke enquiries reach us after another supplier has said, “We don’t make that model”, or asked for technical drawings. That is little help when the machine is a Morooka, a discontinued telehandler or a site dumper that never had a cab as standard.

You do not need to provide drawings or take measurements. We scan the machine, design the cab in CAD and show you exactly what we plan to build. You approve the design and the price before we cut any steel.

A custom forklift cab starts from the machine, not a drawing

Most cab work starts from a template. We hold more than 20,000 designs on file, built over 30 years, covering every major UK forklift brand. If your machine is common, the odds are we already have it and can quote quickly.

Bespoke starts where the template ends. It is for the machine that has no design on file anywhere: unusual, discontinued, imported, or the only one of its kind on your site. That is the work most suppliers turn down. It is the work we built a process around.

Few UK manufacturers can design a cab for a chassis with no existing template. 3D scanning and in-house CAD design for a machine we have never seen is not a common capability in this market. It is the reason people reach us after being turned away twice.

How scan-to-fit works, step by step

1. Tell us about the machine

Send us the make, model, where it is, and when you need the cab. Photos help, but you do not need technical drawings or measurements.

2. We scan it

We bring a 3D scanner to your site and scan the machine’s exact geometry. This includes mounting points, sightlines, working clearances, hydraulics and any brackets that could affect the fit. The scan causes minimal disruption, so the machine does not stay out of service for long. We can also scan it at our Birkenhead facility if that suits you better.

3. We design the cab in CAD

The scan becomes a full CAD model. Our design team builds the cab around your actual machine. We account for operator clearance, visibility, access points and nearby components. The design comes from your machine rather than measurements from a similar model.

4. You approve the design and price

We show you the completed design before manufacture begins. You can see how the cab will look, where it will mount and how it will sit on the machine. We also confirm the fixed price at this stage. We do not cut any steel until you approve both the design and the cost.

This gives you control without asking you to handle the engineering. You review a clear design and approve the finished plan.

5. We build it in Birkenhead

We manufacture the cab in-house, under our ISO 9001:2015 certified process. Our designers remain involved throughout the production, so there are no handovers to an offshore factory or third-party manufacturer.

6. We fit it on your machine

Our engineers come back to your site and install the cab on the machine. You receive a fully fitted enclosure, with the installation handled by the people who designed and built it.

The full scan-to-fit cab process usually takes 6 to 10 weeks, depending on the complexity of the machine and cab. We provide a realistic timescale after the scan and keep you updated throughout.

Machines we’ve already built from scratch

The best proof is the work. We have designed and built cabs for machines that had no template anywhere, including the Morooka MST300VD tracked carrier, the Caterpillar DP70NTD, and the Manitou TMT25S. None of those came with a cab as standard. All of them have one now.

Discontinued models are the same story. A machine going out of production doesn’t stop needing weather or safety protection, and the fact that nobody sells a cab for it any more is exactly why we scan it.

Every bespoke scan we do becomes a permanent design on file. So the unusual machine you bring us today makes the next one like it faster for whoever calls after you. Your one-off adds to the 23,000.

Send us the make and model

If the usual suppliers have drawn a blank, send us the machine’s make, model and location. Include a few photos if you have them. We will check our design files and tell you the most practical next step. Explore our Custom Cabs or learn more about our Design Services.