Safety

Product Spotlight: ICWM BY NICK FORTUNA When choosing casters for material handling equipment, manufacturers sometimes are surprised to learn that there are thousands of different options, and many factors go into selecting the right one, including ergonomics. Narrowing down those options can seem overwhelming, but the Institute of Casters and Wheels Manufacturers, an MHI Industry Group, helps companies pair the ...

Wearable technology providers are overcoming many of the barriers as costs come down, capabilities increase and integration with existing warehouse management systems is simplified.

Over 37,047 visitors connected with over 857 exhibitors across 405,000 square feet of exhibit space at Atlanta’s Georgia World Congress Center for MODEX 2022—a record-setting event.

Safety is paramount for the operation of any equipment in a warehouse space, but it takes on particular gravity in the field of underhung cranes and monorail systems, which are installed in facilities for overhead material handling and load movement.

As high labor turnover continues to create an array of stiff challenges, the importance of devoting resources to safety in the field of overhead lifting cranes and hoists has never been more in focus. MHI’s Overhead Alliance, which includes the Crane Manufacturers Association of America (CMAA), the Hoist Manufacturers Institute (HMI) and the Monorail Manufacturers Association (MMA), is leading the way in providing safety education and resources.

Safer Handling BY TOM GRESHAM Operators of factories and warehouses increasingly are seeking to integrate industrial lift devices with other components of their spaces. No longer do lifts operate in relative isolation. In that way, lifts are “a piece of the overall machine now,” said James Johnston, director of engineering at MHI member Autoquip and chair of Lift Manufacturers Product ...

The quest for an injury-free workplace requires solid management systems and investments in safety-enhancing technologies, but a strong culture–based on leadership visibility, employee engagement and accountability–is key to achieving a great track record over the long haul.

Three of MHI’s Industry Groups recently were appointed ambassadors to a federal program geared toward the safety of hoists, cranes and monorails.

Ergonomics—the science that designs environments, equipment, tools and tasks within the capabilities of people to maximize productivity, efficiency and safety—has been an important part of the material handling industry for decades.

BY TOM GRESHAM Link to digital version of article in MHI Solutions. Twenty years ago, ergonomics “was kind of a nice thing to do,” said Jim Galante, chair of MHI’s Ergonomic Assist Systems & Equipment (EASE) Industry Group, but it was not an area that attracted close attention in material handling. In the decades since then, however, he said an ...