Safety

Increased Use of Sophisticated Safety Tools an Important Trend on the Loading Docks

SAFER HANDLING BY TOM GRESHAM The loading dock is a flashpoint for safety, with approximately 25% of warehouse accidents happening in the space, according to OSHA. That makes it essential for the material handling industry and every organization with a loading dock to prioritize loading dock safety. “It’s important for us to do what we can to prevent those accidents and ...

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Cranes, Overhead Handling Systems Adopt New Tools to Strengthen Safety

BY TOM GRESHAM When automation first grew more widespread, the crane and overhead handling systems category was slow to adopt out of safety concerns. With time and more advances, however, that perspective has changed. Today, safety is the primary reason automation is being increasingly embraced in the field. “With the technologies that are out there now, you’re much more apt to ...

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Is Your Facility OSHA Inspection Ready?

Feature Learn more about OSHA’s new national emphasis program for warehouses and distribution centers. BY CAROL MILLER, CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER, MHI Inspections for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) National Emphasis Program (NEP) on Warehousing and Distribution Center Operations began on October 13, 2023. Announced this past summer as directive number CPL 03-00-026, the goal is to reduce and ...

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No Matter the Load, Worker Training is a Priority for Hoist Equipment Makers

Safer Handling BY TOM GRESHAM The hoist equipment that falls under the umbrella of the Hoist Manufacturers Institute, an independent trade association affiliated with MHI, covers a wide spectrum of lifting needs—from smaller hoists with capacities of up to two tons to higher-capacity hoists that can lift up to 250 tons and above. Still, no matter the lifting requirements, the training ...

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Rapid Growth in Mobile Automated Vehicles Cannot Leave Safety Behind

Safer Handling BY TOM GRESHAM As warehouses and distribution centers increasingly aim to incorporate automation into their operations, the interest in Automatic Guided Vehicles (AGVs) and Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) has escalated, leading to robust growth in the industry. For MHI’s Mobile Automation Group (MAG), it is essential that growth is accompanied by an emphasis on safety. In fact, MAG ...

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Protecting Your Greatest Asset

CEO Update This famous quote has never been truer, yet while managing unpredictable supply chain disruptions and meeting increasing customer demands, many businesses overlook the importance of the worker experience and having a strategic workplace safety program in place. At its core, it’s about caring about your people and creating a culture that they want to be a part of—one ...

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Use Ergonomics to Up Productivity, Retention

Solutions Spotlight: EASE BY KATIE KUEHNER-HEBERT Being able to operate equipment without being injured or too fatigued to do much of anything else for the rest of the day goes a long way in keeping employees happy—something particularly important in this era of the Great Resignation. Members of MHI’s Industry Group EASE—Ergonomic Assist Systems and Equipment—know a thing or two ...

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The Hidden Costs of Workplace Injuries

Transportation and warehousing companies that are serious about reducing costs need to take a good look at the effectiveness of their workplace safety programs. Feature   BY MARY LOU JAY BIGPIXEL PHOTO/SHUTTERSTOCK.COM   According to a 2022 report from Liberty Mutual, non-fatal workplace injuries where employees lose more than five days of work cost these industries nearly $4.67 billion annually ...

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Protective Guarding Evolves to Strengthen Safety for Workers, Equipment

Safer Handling: ProGMA BY TOM GRESHAM People need to feel safe to be productive, and in industrial environments a crucial component of keeping workers safe is keeping them adequately separated from certain equipment. Fixed protective guarding products, such as safety fences, netting, guardrails and bollards, are the key tools used to ensure manufacturing and distribution facilities are as safe as ...

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Ergonomics Practices In Manual Selection Operations

What Grocery Distribution Centers Are Currently Doing to Prevent Musculoskeletal Injuries Higher Education BY STEVEN LAVENDER AND CAROLYN SOMMERICH, THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY TRONG NGUYEN/SHUTTERSTOCK.COM Musculoskeletal injury rates in grocery and related products continue to be approximately twice the overall industry average. Most of these injuries in grocery distribution centers (DCs) are experienced by the “selectors” who are the people ...

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