| Company: |
AF&PA member company; PPSA member site |
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| Industry: |
Converting Plant – NAICS Code 322299 |
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| Task: |
Transporting heavier items over significant distances with cart |
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| Employees: |
100 (number at the site) |
Success Brief: A fine paper sheet
finishing facility purchased material handling carts for employees to transport 30 pound rolls of
labels and 60 pound cartons of paper.
The Problem
Packaging operators had to walk 200 feet (one-way) to the labels storage area
to pick up and return with a supply of labels to apply on the product. Occasionally the operators
also needed to pull a carton of paper off the line and move it to another area to rerun. A roll of
labels can weigh up to 30 pounds and operators would often carry more than one roll at a time; the
cartons of paper weigh up to 60 pounds.
The Solution
Material Handling Cart |
The facility purchased a material handling cart that was easy to push,
suitable for the contemplated loads, and available from most material handling supply companies for
about $150 to $300 depending on material and style. One set of wheels on the cart is fixed, and the
other set swivels to facilitate steerage. The wheels are made of hard rubber and of a sufficient
size to facilitate easy movement of a loaded cart. Once the original cart and procedure were
accepted by the operators as a better way of performing the task, more carts of the same design were
purchased.
The Impact
While there had not been any injuries resulting from carrying the labels and
cartons by hand, our site survey concluded that this use of the carts would reduce the likelihood of
both musculoskeletal injuries and dropped items. The change also had a positive effect on employee
morale, and increased productivity. There were about 12 employees affected by this change.
Source:
AF&PA; PPSA
(August 2007)
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