When large amounts of materials must be moved within a facility, using industrial carts with casters is the preferred and ergonomically sound solution.
By Jean Feingold—
An industrial cart with casters is the right choice “in any situation where an operator needs to push/pull light to heavy loads of material or manually pick material where ergonomic stress points are susceptible to being aggravated,” said Terry Parmelee of MHI member Kinetic Technologies.
“Standard features for mobile ergonomic focused carts take into account the right caster selection to enable superior push/pull forces for operators as they move material manually throughout work cells,” Parmelee said. It’s important to have an ergonomically engineered handle in the optimal height position so operators can move the material manually and safely. Carts have an open frame or flat base structure to accommodate dunnage, with a tow bar and hitch system if they are tugged on a train.
Special features are available to meet special needs. “Flat deck style carts are the most common and utilitarian,” Parmelee said. Bolt on or welded “riser” decks can be implemented on carts so the material resides at the correct ergonomic height for an operator.