Benefits of Ergonomic Workplaces

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Every type of workplace can promote better ergonomics for its workers. Offices, warehouses, factories and other industries can use labor-saving devices that also prevent injuries. The advantages of ergonomics go beyond injury prevention. Having the right equipment could save money for your company, too. Discover more about the benefits of ergonomic workplaces and how to gain those advantages for your warehouse below.

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What Is Ergonomic Equipment?

Ergonomic-friendly equipment has a design that makes work less strenuous on the body, reducing fatigue and improving productivity. Devices in this category can prevent repetitive strain injuries and acute injuries by encouraging proper body alignment and lifting techniques. Some ergonomic pieces will also reduce the effort required for work, cutting down on strain.

In warehouses, lighting and equipment play parts in preventing accidents and strain. The Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) includes ergonomics as part of its information on warehouse safety standards. The organization also notes the importance of having lifting equipment and training employees in ergonomic standards. Both are crucial to creating a safer workplace.

What Are the Benefits of Ergonomics?

Ergonomic equipment is vital to preventing injuries and keeping as many employees working in your warehouse as possible. Musculoskeletal disorders (MSD), or ergonomic injuries, accounted for 30% of the days missed from work in 2018 among private sector businesses. The number of MSD incidences has decreased since 2011 from 35.4 per 10,000 full-time workers to 27.2 in 2018. But the median number of days missed from work has slightly increased from 11 days in 2011 to 12 in 2018.

Because the number of days taken off work remains steady, you need to do everything possible to reduce the risk of MSD and decrease the total days your workforce misses. Gain that advantage, among others, when you use ergonomic-friendly practices. The benefits of ergonomics in your warehouse operations include:

Maximizing Workforce

Many types of ergonomic warehouse equipment can reduce the effort and number of people required for tasks. For instance, using material handling devices, such as pallet trucks, that reduce the amount of time required for specific jobs can increase workers’ productivity and make up for absentee employees.

Every worker in a warehouse has a job to do. With the right equipment, they can do those jobs safer and faster. Plus, they can avoid excessive strain and injury, maintaining and maximizing your workforce.

Increasing Worker Efficiency

Worker efficiency and productivity connect to employees’ comfort levels. Tired or sore workers may not excel in accuracy when picking products. A better-designed warehouse with ergonomic equipment to help workers do their jobs with less effort and pain can boost accuracy.

Determine your worker efficiency and comfort through regular discussions and open feedback from employees, especially after implementing ergonomic equipment and practices. If employees feel comfortable discussing their opinions about the new ergonomic equipment, they will be more open to changes that address their needs and help them to work better.

Preventing Employee Burnout

Tired workers who constantly are in pain will burn out faster than those who are comfortable in their jobs. The warehouse industry already has excessively high turnover rates. A survey of the industry in 2018 showed an average employee turnover rate of 32.5%, but eight locations had higher than 100% turnover. Sites that had lower turnover rates had better communication with employees or used temporary labor.

Temp labor helps to ease the effort that permanent workers put into their jobs. But investing in ergonomically sound equipment to help make workers’ tasks easier and faster also offers a way to prevent burnout and turnover.

Saving Money

Better productivity can create faster unloading and loading times for trailers at a warehouse. By moving products more efficiently, workers save time and help the company to increase its profits. Plus, with safer conditions, workers don’t take as much time off, maintaining your permanent workforce. A reduced risk for injury also cuts down on the need for workers’ compensation. Safer warehouses with ergonomic working conditions reduce costs and can boost profits, ultimately bolstering the company’s bottom line.

How to Create an Ergonomic Workplace

Implementing the ergonomics of material handling equipment in your warehouse involves a few considerations. There are three main control methods for improving ergonomics and reducing the chances of injuries in the workplace, per OSHA’s recommendations – work practices, engineering and personal protection equipment.  

Ergonomic Work Practices

Work practices require training to teach employees when to request help for lifting or moving loads. These improved practices educate workers on how to correctly use ergonomic equipment in the warehouse, such as pallet stackers or furniture movers.

Other methods of promoting ergonomics through work practices include rotating employees to different jobs so they don’t repeat the same tasks, which could increase strain. Promoting regular breaks can also protect workers from excessive strain on their muscles during their shifts. Those adjustments can prevent burnout, leading to better efficiency and productivity.

Ergonomic Engineering Solutions

Engineering solutions in a warehouse refer to using ergonomic material handling equipment. This type of equipment helps workers to lift loads with reduced manual labor. These solutions can also keep loads at comfortable working heights. For instance, a lift table places a load at waist height to make moving items off the table to a nearby shelf easier and more comfortable.

Using lifting equipment such as pulleys, lift trucks and lift tables can make moving loads vertically safer. For moving equipment across a facility, wheeled devices that support several thousand pounds, such as dollies, skates and furniture movers, protect workers from injury and prevent damage to products.

Ergonomic Personal Protection Equipment

Personal protection equipment for workers can also help with ergonomics. Examples of ergonomic personal protection equipment include cold protection gear for those working in cold storage warehouses and gloves to protect against vibrations from power tools. To implement those pieces of ergonomic protection equipment, distribute those items and train employees how to use them effectively. 

How to Improve Ergonomics in a Warehouse With Equipment

To improve ergonomics in a warehouse, start with training sessions to make all workers aware of safety expectations they must follow. Provide your workers with ergonomic handling equipment that makes their jobs faster, easier, safer and less straining. Proper lighting and fall protection are other aspects of good warehouse ergonomics you should include when evaluating workplace safety and ergonomics of warehouse picking and stocking. Ergonomic equipment to implement those practices includes:

Lift Tables

Use a pallet truck to lift a pallet onto a lift table to keep the load at a comfortable, safe height while working. Lift tables reduce kneeling, bending and other awkward movements when unloading pallets. Some models can handle up to 30,000 pounds and have dimensions up to 84 inches by 204 inches. These tables lift the loads to a necessary height while securely holding the pallet.

Swiveling tops on some lift tables make it easier for workers to access products from the surface without stretching or overbalancing. Even with their robust performance, the tables are also portable, making it easier to move these vital pieces of ergonomic equipment around a facility.

Pallet Trucks and Stackers

Pallet trucks and pallet stackers make moving palletized loads safer. For instance, pallet trucks with low profiles can reach pallets on the bottom of racks, while high-lift trucks bring pallets up to higher levels or pull them down. 

Manual and electric pallet trucks offer the same safety, with electric ones providing faster lifting while manual options provide a more economical choice. Heavy-duty pallet trucks offer carrying capacities up to 6,000 pounds. For exterior use on off-road sites, such as outdoor areas of warehouses, all-terrain pallet trucks provide an alternative to manually moving pallets. These trucks have pneumatic wheels and rugged designs that reduce the chances of tipping or spilling contents when used over uneven ground.

For lifting, loading and unloading palletized loads, pallet stackers protect workers from injuries caused by trying to pick up loads without assistance. Stackers operate well in small spaces and have weight capacities from 500 to 3,300 pounds.  

Dollies, Skids and Movers

When moving heavy pieces, dollies, skids and movers become invaluable for the movers’ health and load integrity. Improper lifting or moving can damage loads, and workers risk injury from dropping products on themselves or straining their muscles. Choosing dollies, skids or movers depends on the type of load carried and the ease of use required:

  • Dollies: Transport dollies can support loads weighing 6,000 to 80,000 pounds or more. Some dollies have handles for easier moving, while individual units require pushing the item on top to move the dolly. Rather than picking up items, lifting equipment lowers the product onto the dolly surface. Tandem dollies increase the support and hold more weight than individual pieces. With their non-skid support surfaces to hold the loads in place and easily moving wheels, dollies make moving loads across warehouses less straining for workers.
  • Skids: Roller skids operate similarly to individual transport dollies but can support even heavier weights, up to 120,000 pounds. Roller skids can move across many types of surfaces, easing the task of maneuvering heavy equipment or loads into place for workers. Use skid steering handles with roller skids to reduce the amount of force needed to transport items around your warehouse.
  • Movers: Hydraulic furniture movers lift and move loads with less stress for workers. These pieces of ergonomic equipment are essential for industries that require regular moving of heavy products an individual should not attempt to move manually. More controlled, ergonomically sound moving of heavy loads will result in fewer acute back injuries or long-term repetitive strain injuries.

Drum Lifters

Because a standard 55-gallon drum can weigh hundreds of pounds when filled, moving and lifting them requires extra precautions. Drum lifters allow workers to safely and securely pick up and move drums by providing a means to connect drums to a lifting system.

These lifters use arms that affix to the top of a drum and connect to an overhead lifting device. Salvage drum lifters can easily move steel drums into overpack containers without spilling the contents.

To ensure workers use drum lifters correctly and safely, always provide training for anyone using these devices. Ensure the area has adequate lighting, as well, so workers can see the drum lifter arms properly grip the tops of the drums they need to move.

Work Platforms

Work platforms create a safe, stable position for workers to access high areas. Unlike ladders that provide a small step to stand on and precarious footing, aerial work platforms are safer and can reach greater heights. These aerial platforms mount to a forklift for safer raising and lowering. Guardrails on all sides keep the worker from falling, and an attached lanyard clips to a safety harness to add additional fall protection.

These ergonomic equipment options let the lift operator adjust the platform’s position. That movement means a worker can easily reach stock and shelves rather than needing to reach over their head or climb up and down a ladder.

Work Positioners

Work positioners have forks to move pallets to a safe working height to minimize bending at the waist that can lead to fatigue and back strain. These devices have forks for lifting loads between 2,200 and 3,000 pounds to safer working heights just below 3 feet from the floor. With this height, workers don’t have to bend over to transfer products from a pallet on the work positioner to a shelf. Reducing worker movement saves time for the company and minimizes discomfort for the worker.

With fully powered work positioners, the loads reach the desired height even faster than with manual models. Use that equipment to increase productivity even more without causing excessive strain on workers.

The compact size and tight turning radius of work positioners make them ideal for moving relatively lighter loads in warehouses, showrooms or other areas with tight spaces.

Contact Cherry’s Material Handling for Equipment to Make Your Facility More Ergonomic

With fair prices and a customer-oriented attitude, Cherry’s Material Handling is your place for ergonomic material handling equipment. Gain the money-saving benefits of increased efficiency with our range of ergonomic equipment options for your warehouse operations. We’re ready to meet and exceed your expectations with our customer service and comprehensive catalog.

For questions about our ergonomic solutions or to learn more about our custom material handling productscontact us at Cherry’s Material Handling online or call 877-350-2729.

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