Manufacturing in the Age of COVID-19

Manufacturing is something our world counts on. As of 2018, the manufacturing industry accounted for almost 16% of the global GDP. Unfortunately, the manufacturing industry took a hit during the pandemic of COVID-19 — the name given to the virus caused by SARS-CoV-2. Many manufacturing plants had to shut down and are beginning to reopen. Some have had to get by with reduced manufacturing workers and employees or major disruptions in their supply chains. Others have been faced with an increased demand for their products.

Whatever challenges your manufacturing company is facing due to COVID-19, you can use this as an opportunity to make your facility and your operations safer, cleaner and more efficient. We’re going to discuss the importance of these goals, how you can achieve them and the valuable benefits you can look forward to when you make these improvements.

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The Importance of Efficiency During COVID-19

Efficiency has always been important for manufacturing companies, but it is critical now more than ever. Manufacturers should look for new ways to streamline operations and save labor. Maximizing efficiency may be the only way for some manufacturing companies to stay in business during this time since their workforce has been diminished. The good news is that, for some companies, as long as you can remain open, this could be a prosperous time for your company since the demand for certain products is high.

One thing is sure: Companies cannot keep up right now if they are using non-efficient machines and manufacturing methods. If this is the case, you’ll waste valuable resources and overwork your employees to get the job done. To remain successful with a limited workforce, you need to identify ways to reduce the amount of labor needed to aid in your operations.

Even if you are fortunate enough to have plenty of employees coming into work, you can still benefit from making your operations more efficient, especially when the future is somewhat unpredictable.

Labor-saving machinery is an excellent solution to consider. These vital pieces of equipment take care of entire tasks or make it easier for employees to perform tasks. Some examples include:

Pallet inverters: A pallet inverter provides a tremendous ergonomic advantage for projects such as load transfers, pallet replacements, and quality control. These devices come in various styles to suit your company’s material handling applications.
Stretch wrappers: Wrapping pallets can take up valuable time and effort, but not when you have a stretch wrapper. This machine uses less film, provides more pre-stretch and ultimately wraps products more effectively than you can do by hand.
Lift tables: Lift tables make palletizing easier by holding pallets at a convenient height and angle. Employees can manipulate the lift table to make their job safer, easier and quicker.
Pallet retrievers: Pallet retrievers are designed for tasks such as removing freezer spacers, combining loads, and replacing pallets. These devices are especially valuable in meat processing plants and cold storage facilities.
Pallet changers: Pallet changers facilitates pallet-to-pallet transfers without the need for your workers to even have to touch the pallet. They can even transfer pressure-sensitive loads safely.

The Benefits of Labor Savings for Manufacturing Companies

Improving in the area of efficiency is one of the best ways you can maximize your profits, combating the financial impact of COVID-19 and keeping up with demand. That is always true, and in the age of COVID-19, it rings truer than ever. Taking steps and purchasing equipment to help you reduce your labor demands can deliver some significant benefits, including reliability, faster turnaround times, less stress for employees and a safer work environment. It can also help you save costs and increase profits.

1. Reliable Labor

Labor-saving technology comes with advantages that you do not get with employees. Even the most dedicated employees may have to call in sick at times. In the case of a coronavirus disease outbreak, you could see your operations disrupted entirely. With labor-saving machines, you can keep operations going with a limited number of employees. Even when all your employees are healthy, labor-saving machines can help you reduce human error and maintain a consistent quality level.

2. Faster Turnaround Time

Greater efficiency also means faster turnaround times and greater production output. When you’re dealing with limited numbers of workers in your facility or workers staying home sick, you could be faced with major slowdowns if you don’t have labor-saving equipment to help you stay on track. With labor-saving equipment in place, you can keep up with demands and remain a reliable supplier for those who count on you. Maintaining fast turnaround times during this challenging era will also give you a competitive edge within the industry.

3. Reduced Stress on Employees

If you’ve had to lay off employees or you are short-staffed due to employees falling ill or staying home, this can put more strain on your remaining employees. Suddenly, the same jobs that required more people need to be completed with fewer people. This can create a great deal of stress and frustration for your remaining employees and may even motivate some to quit. Labor-saving equipment can help relieve this stress by taking away some of the taxing work for employees.

4. Safer Workplace

Safety should always be a major priority for your company. Especially now, you can’t afford the cost of fines, potential lawsuits and the damage to your reputation that can come with an employee being injured due to unsafe working conditions. Labor-saving machinery can help remove risks involved with moving pallets and performing other potentially dangerous tasks. Devices like lift tables can also help employees maintain a healthier posture, preventing repetitive stress injuries. Choosing easy-to-clean equipment is smart since this can promote a more hygienic environment, as well.

5. Greater Chance for Profit and Cost Savings

Purchasing labor-saving equipment is a financial investment, but these machines can pay for themselves in the long run because of the benefits they deliver. You can save on costs and increase your profits with a smaller workforce or keep up a higher output with the same number of employees. The safety advantages of modern labor-saving equipment can also save you from excess costs and help you protect your products so you can avoid waste.

The Importance of Safety During COVID-19

Safety has always been key for manufacturing companies, especially considering the inherent risks that can come with working in an industrial environment. Thankfully, workplace fatalities in the manufacturing sector have declined over time. However, workplace injuries and occasional fatalities continue to plague the manufacturing industry. It remains crucial to find ways to make your working conditions and operations safer.

A safe workplace can help you avoid fines for Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) violations, expensive workers’ compensation claims and possible lawsuits. It can also boost employee morale, decrease stress and help employees feel valued, which may boost your retention rates. A robust safety program may even help you increase your productivity.

The pandemic has introduced new health and safety challenges, necessitating extra safety measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19, including:

Reconfiguring the facility to allow for social distancing.
Replacing in-person meetings with digital communications.
Adjusting sick leave policies if needed to encourage workers to stay home if they might be sick.
Providing workers with the appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE), including face masks.
Educating employees on the virus and the best way to stop its spread.
Frequent environmental cleaning and disinfection of your facility.
Screening employees to ensure they’re not exhibiting symptoms before they start a shift.

COVID-19 has also led to indirect safety challenges for some manufacturers. Many companies are limiting the number of workers in their facility to follow social distancing guidelines, handle financial constraints or balance a limited supply of healthy workers. This can increase the pressure and stress on your employees and machinery, making injuries more likely. Overworked employees can become careless or distracted rather than staying vigilant. Pushing your equipment to work harder can also potentially lead to injuries. Some ways you can maintain safety in your manufacturing facility is by:

Implementing a strong safety program.
Installing safety accessories like guard rails, emergency stops and non-slip mats.
Training employees on a machine before they operate it.
Proactively maintaining equipment.
Upgrading equipment to safer, more efficient models.
Choosing ergonomic designs.
Creating custom solutions where needed to address unique safety problems.

OSHA requires businesses to have an infectious disease preparedness and response plan to help guide their defense against COVID-19, so make sure you have an infection prevention plan in place and are taking measures to protect your employees.

The Benefits of Safe Manufacturing

Taking steps to protect workers from contracting and spreading COVID-19 and to maintain a safe work environment comes with some very valuable benefits to your employees and organization as a whole. You can keep your workforce healthy and showing up to work, avoid costly workplace injuries, make workers more comfortable and reduce their stress levels.

1. Keep Workers Healthy

When you take steps to prevent the spread of COVID-19 among your workers, you’re more likely to have a healthy, thriving staff who shows up to work. Even one of your employees contracting the coronavirus could have a tremendous ripple effect on your company if it isn’t contained. By implementing steps like screenings, social distancing and PPE use, you can do your part to keep your workers healthy.

2. Fewer Accidents and Injuries

An unsafe work environment is likely to lead to preventable accidents and injuries. When you invest in better training and equipment, you can reduce or even eliminate the number of accidents and injuries — especially serious ones — that occur in your manufacturing facility. This can save you money since it prevents product damage and the expenses that come with injuries to workers. Fewer accidents and injuries are also likely to contribute to a positive morale among your employees.

3. Enhanced Employee Comfort

Some injuries workers face are due to repetitive motions or too much strain. For instance, if an employee has to reach up or hunch over regularly to perform a task, they could end up with repetitive stress back injuries. Getting high-powered equipment to do some of the heavy lifting and implementing more ergonomic workflows can help prevent these types of injuries. It will also allow your employees to enjoy a more comfortable experience at work, encouraging a positive attitude and productivity.

4. Reduced Stress

Workers may experience stress when they feel they’re at risk of being injured or contracting COVID-19 at work. When you’ve taken steps to create a safe environment, it can set employees’ minds at ease so they can focus on their work and not worry. It also demonstrates a level of care for your employees that can increase their sense of loyalty to your company and their desire to be a productive member of the team.

The Importance of Cleanliness During COVID-19

Cleaning isn’t a new concept to manufacturing facilities, but the level of cleaning needed in the age of COVID-19 might be. Having a facility that appears clean isn’t enough. You have to kill pathogens that cause COVID-19 and other illnesses so you can keep your essential workers healthy and keep your operations going.

Carefully cleaning any possible sources of contamination is especially important for essential manufacturing industries that cannot afford a shutdown due to an outbreak of COVID-19 at their plant. The food and beverage sector is a good example. People rely on the supply chain to remain intact so they can get their groceries. But facilities must shut down if they experience an outbreak of the virus.

Some facilities shut down to avoid the risk altogether, but this hasn’t been an option for some. In addition to the food industry, other essential industries like health and beauty have had to find ways to continue production without experiencing a crippling coronavirus outbreak and shutdown. Consumers are counting on products like soap and hand sanitizer to help them stay safe and healthy.

Even if you are lucky enough to avoid having any of your employees contract the virus, you can still suffer consequences if your employees don’t feel safe at work. Implementing deeper and more frequent cleaning routines and adding hand sanitizing stations demonstrates to your employees that you’re taking tangible steps to ensure their health and safety.

Some steps you should take to maintain a clean environment include:

Cleaning and disinfecting commonly touched surfaces at least once per shift.
Using the right cleaning products to kill SARS-CoV-2.
Installing hand sanitizing stations for employees.

The Benefits of Manufacturing Company Cleanliness

Though it requires extra effort, maintaining a clean, healthy workplace can deliver some critical benefits. It’s also necessary to meet requirements and standards from the government. It can help you preserve your employees’ health, reduce absenteeism at your plant and reduce stress levels for your employees so they feel safe at work.

1. Meeting Government Requirements for Sanitation and Health

OSHA specifies that all employers should prioritize good workplace hygiene, including routine cleaning and disinfecting. Manufacturing companies must abide by OSHA standards and any other relevant government standards, which may be frequently updated as the situation evolves. Stay up to date with official information from sites like the Department of Homeland Security and any mandates from the federal, state and local government. Meeting these requirements is a must, and it’s one of the key benefits you’ll enjoy when you’re careful with your cleaning processes.

2. Improving Employee Health and Safety

A cleaner facility will decrease the chance your employees pick up COVID-19 at work. That doesn’t mean you’ll eliminate any chance your employees will get sick, but you can decrease the chance considerably. In addition to helping prevent the spread of COVID-19, you can also prevent the spread of other illnesses like colds and flus that can keep employees at home. Maintaining employee health will allow you to keep your operations in full swing.

3. Reducing Worker Stress

COVID-19 has brought with it mental health challenges in addition to the physical effects. These challenges are just as significant in many ways. When workers feel they are at risk of contracting the virus at work, they may deal with a lot of stress. Training employees on the importance of proper industrial cleaning procedures and implementing these procedures can help your employees feel more empowered and safe at work. This can reduce employees’ stress levels and help them focus on their work.

We Can Make Labor Savings, Safety and Cleanliness Possible for Your Company

Cherry’s Material Handling can help your company meet its goals for keeping your facility running efficiently, safely and cleaner than ever before. Our innovative, effective equipment can help you achieve these goals and launch you into the future — not just help you get by during this challenging time. We even offer custom solutions where they’re necessary to address your unique needs. Let’s take a look at how Cherry’s can contribute to labor savings, safety and cleanliness.

1. Labor Savings

Our equipment solutions can help you get the job done efficiently and without overstraining or overwhelming your employees. Modern, labor-saving equipment can also help you make your facility safer and help you maintain high quality standards. You can find ready-made solutions in our e-commerce store, or you can request custom solutions that will speed up your operations and lessen the burden for employees so you can enjoy a more productive and profitable plant.

2. Safety

An equipment upgrade can help you improve the safety of your operations and working environment. Right now, an important aspect of staying safe is protecting your employees from COVID-19. That means the way you operate may change temporarily or permanently. Whatever the case, you may need new equipment, tools or features tailored to this new normal. Because these circumstances have affected each company’s operations and responses differently, you may need customized safety solutions. Cherry’s can help you meet your health and safety needs.

3. Cleanliness

Cherry’s can provide you with durable equipment that can hold up to sanitation procedures. We also have equipment that makes it easier to get the job done so your staff can focus on cleaning and keeping your facility a hygienic place to work. We understand how critical cleanliness is at this time. Rest assured that all our equipment comes fully cleaned. We can also help companies in sectors where cleanliness is especially critical, such as the food and pharmaceutical industries, develop the solutions they need to maintain high standards. Our goal is not just to meet your standards — we aim to exceed your expectations.

Contact Us to Learn More

The experts at Cherry’s Material Handling can help you find the equipment you need and develop custom solutions where they’re needed so you can make your manufacturing facility more efficient, safe and hygienic for your employees. When you achieve these important goals, you can emerge from this challenging time better and stronger than before. It’s time to demonstrate the resilience of the manufacturing industry as your company rises to meet this challenge. Contact Cherry’s or call us at 877-350-2729 for more information on how we can help.