christopher Harper, Author at DJ Products

Top Trends for 2016 for the Hospitality Industry

Hospitality Trends

Hotel management has become “largely a science, not an art,” says Bob Rauch, president of the consulting firm RAR Hospitality. Analytics, technology, and responding to disruption rule the game. In 2016 and beyond, hotels can expect plenty of pressure — and growth opportunities — stemming from industry trends.

Hospitality Trends in 2016

From online marketing to amenities for tech-savvy guests, hotel management has already been focused on modernization. In 2016, the millennial crowd especially will drive these changes.

Digital marketing: from video ads to online travel agents, hotels need to get involved on the digital scene. You need your brand in front of the right eyeballs, almost at any cost.

Personalized service: younger customers are choosing hotels with open lobbies, friendly bars and restaurants, and a personalized touch from guest services.

Capital expenses: With the economy strong and fuel prices low, the travel industry has money coming in. Use it to renovate or purchase equipment (like powered hospitality carts for housekeeping).

Anticipate disruption: Hotels can stay strong in the face of Airbnb and other disruptors by improving amenities and quality of service.

Staying Profitable and Relevant

To succeed in 2016, hotels need to deliver a fantastic experience that will have customers raving on social media.

Answer the demand for personalized service with better housekeeping and customer service solutions that let your staff respond better to guests’ requests. Powered hospitality carts keep employees energetic and efficient, and rooms cleaned and turned over more quickly.

Stay ahead of the trends and stand out from the competition this year. Contact us at DJ Products to learn more about housekeeping carts and other hospitality equipment.

Strong Growth in Trucking Industry Boosts Warehouse Growth

Growth in Trucking and Warehousing

The 2015 jobs data shows steady growth across every component related to the warehousing industry. Small gains in manufacturing have bred considerable growth in warehouse and trucking employment numbers. As truckers overcome a job shortage and retail regains its strength, warehouses sit in the middle of a very bullish market.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported marked growth in trucking jobs in 2015, including the addition of more than 7,000 jobs in a strong June. Warehouse facilities added thousands more jobs as the overall unemployment numbers continued to fall.

Market Growth and Your Warehouse

Distribution centers have found greater success in recent years thanks in part to improvements in logistics and technology. The Wall Street Journal report on warehouse job growth points to a new giant Nike logistics center in Memphis (now the largest warehouse in the apparel giant’s system) as a symbol of the industry’s growth.

To tap into this growth potential, warehouses are focusing on slimmer, smarter operations. To control costs as labor needs rise, managers must also find safety solutions that keep employees healthy, working, and away from workers compensation claims.

Automated solutions such as our motorized caddy for industrial carts can help streamline warehouse operations and protect workers from injury.

Electric and battery-powered industrial carts for hauling equipment and inventory: reduce the neck, back, and lower body injuries associated with heavy loads and repetitive tasks.

Waste container movers: improve the waste removal process while avoiding musculoskeletal disorders associated with heavy lifting, throwing, and pushing.

Talk to us at DJ Products about industrial carts and automated solutions for better work environments and more sustainable, profitable growth.

Hospitals as the Newest Entrepreneurs Bodes Well for Patients

Better patient care and innovative methods — hospitals today are finding these not only helpful but necessary to sustain business in the current healthcare market. Providers are shifting from a focus on maximizing the volume of services toward a new focus on improving the quality of services.

U.S. News & World Report finds that an entrepreneurial trend has taken over at hospitals in order to innovate and thrive in this complex and competitive industry. Many hospitals are finding new CEOs in the form of industry outsiders or doctors with a distinctly entrepreneurial mindset.

Hospitals need innovative leaders to help manage the organization through a number of changes. The Affordable Care Act has drastically altered the payment model, and profitability depends on a new set of parameters. The public has more options than ever, including low-cost walk-in clinics at retailers and pharmacies.

Ultimately, hospitals need radical changes and visionary business leaders to handle these changes and figure out how to deliver higher quality patient care with well-managed costs.

For patients, this means that healthcare providers are trying to lower the cost of care while also shifting the focus toward patient satisfaction. When the healthcare business model is value-based rather than volume-based, patients win.

One way that hospitals can lower costs and improve their bottom line: making day-to-day operations more efficient. At DJ Products, we make industrial tugs for hospital equipment carts so employees can move linen carts and heavy supplies faster and with less risk of worker injury. Over time, industrial tugs improve productivity and lower operating costs.

Visit DJProducts.com for more information about hospital cart movers and industrial tugs.

Welcome to Lindbergh Aircraft Tug Company Blog

In the spirit of innovation that marked Charles Lindbergh’s historic flight across the Atlantic Ocean in 1927, Lindbergh Aircraft Tug Company was launched to serve the aviation industry shaped by the famed aviator’s achievements. Located in Little Falls, Minnesota, Lucky Lindy’s childhood home, Lindbergh Aircraft Tug Co. is dedicated to manufacturing high quality, industrial strength, ergonomically designed aircraft tow tugs for the small aircraft towing and aviation industry.

Lindy’s AircraftCaddys are competitively priced and more cost effective to operate than traditional lawn mower train tow vehicles. Ideal for individual, FBO or corporate ground operations, Lindy’s family of aircraft tugs are capable of towing up to 35,000 pounds. Compact design, one-person operation and superior maneuverability make Lindy’s aircraft tugs the perfect solution for small ground operations, tightly stacked hangers or airplane ramp staging.

Lindbergh Aircraft Tug Co. is a subsidiary of DJ Products, Inc. DJ Products is the world leader in the manufacture of battery-powered, walk-behind tow tugs for the manufacturing, hospital, retail, government and automotive industries. Ergonomically designed to take the pain and strain out of manually moving heavy carts and wheeled equipment, DJ Products’ innovative powered tugs and carts are less costly, more maneuverable and more cost efficient to operate than traditional forklifts or pallet jacks. For information on the complete line of DJ Products’ ergonomically-designed material handling caddies, please visit them at www.djproducts.com.

Development of Lindbergh Aircraft Tugs was born from years of hands-on design and manufacture of thousands of powered carts for diverse applications at many Fortune 500 companies, including Boeing, GE, Ford, GM, Exxon Mobil, Caterpillar, Cardinal Health, Wal-Mart, Proctor & Gamble, Johnson & Johnson and Home Depot. Lessons learned in a broad range of challenging material handling applications were honed and applied to the unique needs of the aviation industry to create a new line of innovative aircraft tugs and tow tractors: Lindy’s Aircraft Caddys .

We hope you’ll join us in this space as we share news, discussion and insight on topics of interest to the aircraft towing and aviation industries, including:

How ergonomics can improve worker health and workplace safety.
How the Obama administration’s push to expand and tighten OSHA regulations will impact your business.
New trends in the aviation industry.
Innovative material handling solutions to common industry problems.
Tips for staying competitive and growing your business.
Useful suggestions for cutting costs and improving your bottom line.

Bookmark this blog and visit us frequently for useful, up-to-date information on the aircraft towing and aviation industries.

Feds Fund Initiative for “Hospital Medicine”

Investing in Medical

Infrastructure upgrades represent the biggest area of need for healthcare expansion in India, and the government there is committing major investments in 2016 and beyond. The country plans to expand health facilities in small and mid-tier cities to meet rapidly growing demand — and also become an international destination for healthcare in Asia.

The push by Indian officials highlights the importance of investing in hospital equipment. The country needs more infrastructure to provide basic care in an enhanced environment complete with medical data tracking, patient discharge services, and other markers of modern medicine.

Just as health providers in the US seek to gain a competitive advantage in the marketplace, Indian hospitals will seek to become a “hub” of healthcare for its region.

Advanced Technology Driving Success in Healthcare

At DJ Products, we know how advanced equipment can propel a hospital’s quality of care with improved service and efficiency. Our powered hospital carts replace the labor manually pushing linen and equipment carts. The repetitive tasks lead to chronic aches and pains for employees, lost time due to injuries, slow rounds, and ultimately higher costs.

Powered hospital carts reduce costs and improve care by making it easier for fewer employees to complete their regular tasks.

Whether your healthcare facility prioritizes cost reductions, personalized care, or even health tourism, the right equipment enables your goals. We offer powered hospital carts including linen carts, platform caddies, dialysis cart movers, and more.

For more information about ergonomic, motorized equipment for the healthcare industry, get in touch with us at DJProducts.com and find solutions that will drive your business in the increasingly competitive health market.

The Face of Travel for 2016

Travel and Hospitality

Low fuel prices and increasing market competition will spell changing attitudes among travel industry companies and consumers in 2016, Jay Rein recently explained to Travel Pulse. As travelers hit the road and skies more, businesses will need to get creative to increase market share.

Rein, of the software solutions provider EPAM Systems, outlines the changing face of travel in 2016:

Airfare wars will increase due to low fuel costs

Consolidation and emerging companies will compete on pricing and service bundles

Optional features may be added as standard amenities to attract consumers’ attention

Technology will become more integrated into every step of the travel experience

Tips for the Hospitality Industry to Gain Customers in 2016

Customized experiences and integrated tech will be major sources of change in the travel industry. An airline might offer in-flight Wi-Fi and gourmet food, while hoteliers and other hospitality industry leaders will have to find their next differentiator.

Hotels can tailor the guest experience with enhanced services such as early check-in and late check-out. Common areas are becoming more like dynamic spaces for dining, wireless computing, and casual gatherings that better suit today’s travelers.

At the heart of the changes: technology that makes it affordable for companies to offer attractive features. Our own powered hospitality carts are one tool that help hotels streamline housekeeping and janitorial work. When employees can efficiently clean rooms on-demand and respond to maintenance needs with less physical strain, the customer experience can be upgraded.

For more info about powered hospitality carts that can help move the needle for your operations efficiency and service capabilities, contact us at DJProducts.com.

Five Steps to Improve Warehouse Safety

Safety First

What does it look like when a warehouse maximizes safety? Workers using tools and methods that inherently mitigate risk. Task automation perhaps plays the biggest role. Repetitive tasks and high-stress movements both cause workplace injuries. Powered pushers and other material handling solutions take away these strains.

The UK’s health and safety news leaders at SHP Online recommend this 5-point plan to improve warehouse safety:

#1. Ongoing safety practices. When starting a new safety protocol, make sure that the best practices continue over time rather than being a one-time meeting or announcement.

#2. Technology should be used to make operations easier and safer. Use tools to improve posture and lifting technique. Powered pushers reduce the risk of common warehouse injuries to the back and neck.

#3. Study “near misses” to prevent accidents that are likely to recur.

#4. Personal protective equipment (PPE) provides a safety net. Focus more on safe practices for prevention, but also use PPE that employees find comfortable.

#5. Communication should be open and frequent. Conduct regular huddles as opposed to only offering formal complaint and suggestion methods.

Not sure where to start? In many warehouses, the heavy carts carrying inventory or equipment create the biggest strain on workers. Powered pushers let any employee maneuver thousands of pounds of weight with the push of a button.

Back, shoulder, groin, and other musculoskeletal injuries take a toll on worker health, and those injuries threaten your operating efficiency as well. For more info on powered cart pushers and pullers for warehouses, talk to us at DJProducts.com about our variety of injury-specific warehouse safety tools.

Boutique Hotels Emerge as a Trend in 2015

Boutique Style Hotels

Boutique hotels have gone from an exciting fad to a lasting trend in recent years. In 2015, hospitality experts have observed more emphasis on both business-friendly hubs and Instagram-worthy lifestyle hotels.

To create the right atmosphere, hoteliers need fast and seamless housekeeping methods. Tools such as a powered housekeeping cart help accomplish the boutique vision by keeping staff happy and friendly and streamlining the cleaning process.

What is your hotel doing to stay ahead of the competition? Modern, premium surroundings are the new norm in hospitality.

Design and Layout Trends in Boutique Hotels

Tourism news magazine Tourexpi recently interviewed some of the leading hospitality design minds about the trends that emerged in 2015:

Striving for authenticity? Work with the local architecture and style, or take another route altogether. Faked authenticity is spotted easily.

Modular design. Get more mileage out of space with easily movable furniture in rooms and public spaces that perform double duty.

Public spaces rather than meeting rooms. Businesspeople are booking meeting rooms less frequently, preferring casual and impromptu communal spaces.

Smaller, minimalist rooms. People do little besides sleep and dress in rooms these days — and hotels are designing smaller rooms.

Foregoing bathtubs? Unless your hotel attracts families with babies, walk-in showers make more sense.

Streamline the housekeeping process, and it’s much easier to succeed as a boutique hotel. A powered housekeeping cart (either a new cart or a battery-powered retrofit kit) can be a major game-changer.

Make sure your employees have the tools they need to provide fast and friendly hospitality. Visit DJProducts.com for more info on our powered housekeeping cart.

Carpet Trends -What’s Hot is More Than Beige

CarpetCaddy Powered Carpet Dolly

Neutrals will always play an important role in great design. But for 2016, beige is just as boring as ever. Tastes are skewing towards warmer tones of taupe or interesting variations on gray with undertones of blue, green, or brown.

Designers and consumers are looking beyond beige for colors and styles that have the same versatility without the yawn factor:

Blues and Greens as Neutrals

Slate blue, faded moss green, and other soft blue and green tones are being chosen for carpets in place of actual neutrals. Few buyers want eye-popping colors that they will grow tired of, but rather muted colors that coordinate easily.

Texture in Place of Pattern

Striations, ribbing, marbled effects and other textural effects are drawing plenty of attention. Textured patterns hide stains and wear and tear. It also avoids looking dated or difficult to complement with decor.

Timeless Geometrics

After a long fad of heavy-handed patterns like chevron and herringbone, the carpet trends have settled on less showy and more timeless geometric patterns. Think low-contrast, two-tone designs like a subtle windowpane pattern.

Keeping up with the trends meaning being able to physically move inventory around to have the popular styles ready to show and sell.

A carpet roll caddy simplifies the process of moving carpets around the warehouse and showroom, or out to delivery trucks. Instead of several employees risking back injury with manual labor, just one employee can handle the load with a battery-powered carpet roll caddy that assists with lifting and placing the item.

Be prepared to move the hot carpet trends of 2016 — check out the carpet roll caddy at DJProducts.com.

Reduce Turnover to Keep Your Warehouse Profitable

Keep it Profitable

Efficiency can swing the profitability of a warehouse more than anything else. And as warehouse managers know, staying efficient requires a strong balance of process, labor, and equipment (like industrial tugs that automate some labor).

Employee turnover hits warehouses hard because workers build skills and get better and faster over time. New employees can be brought into the fold with a good process and helpful tools, but it’s always worth the effort to retain the good employees you already have.

Some great tips for reducing employee turnover from the Wall Street Journal are very applicable to warehouses:

Include “culture fit” during the hiring process. You can teach the job. Bad fits aren’t going to stay around for long.

Stay aware of competitive salary and benefits to avoid poaching.

Reward and recognize top performers, and offer upward mobility as a motivating tool for everyone.

Be accommodating with schedules when possible — working around special requests and approving time-off requests go a long way.

Be sure to consider the physical labor involved, too. Are your employees comfortable on the job, or would many of them prefer a job that is less tiring and difficult? Injuries and soreness can push an employee to look elsewhere.

Automated material handling solutions help reduce employee turnover by significantly improving the work environment. Industrial tugs can move inventory carts and haul equipment with minimal effort. Eliminate the strain of chronic back pain and other warehouse ailments, and your employees are less likely to look around.

Follow our blog for more warehouse management tips and check out DJProducts.com to explore your options for industrial tugs and warehouse cart movers.

Author: christopher Harper