Material Handling Equipment Supplier Archives

Warehouse Workers Adapt to New Roles as Robots Move In

Robots Are Changing Warehouse Staffing and Management Techniques

Amazon is unquestionably an industry leader. The e-commerce company surpassed Walmart as the biggest retailer by market value years ago. According to Fortune, Amazon is worth more than Costco, Target, and Walmart combined. Companies like Walmart are scrambling to maintain revenue by increasing their focus on e-commerce. Currently, nobody does e-commerce better than Amazon. And the company Jeff Bezos founded in 1994 is fully embracing warehouse equipment and robots to stay ahead of others.

New challenges for employees

In the not so distant past, monotonous, repetitive jobs were done by humans for low pay. Thanks to advancements in technology, robots are now capable of doing more intricate tasks. While it’s true that many jobs that were traditionally completed by human hands are now being done by robots, Amazon’s staggering growth has created an abundance of other jobs that need to be filled by human workers. These jobs are mentally challenging and not repetitive, says 21-year-old Nissa Scott, who began working at one of Amazon’s New Jersey warehouses last year. She is responsible for monitoring and troubleshooting several robots.

Warehouse equipment benefits employees and companies

Warehouse management has a lot of things happening all at once and countless repeatable processes. Reliable, efficient equipment along with a proper focus on ergonomics and employee training helps to maintain profitability for a company by preventing back strains, reducing slip and fall injuries, and lowering the company’s costs associated with workplace injuries. The average cost to an employer due to a common trash room injury is more than $41,000.

Contact DJ Products to speak with one of our knowledgeable sales engineers about which of our material handling equipment products are best for your company’s needs.

The Internet of Things is Transforming Warehouses

Technology is Changing Warehouses

How can your warehouse keep up with the challenges of today’s increasingly competitive industry? Use labor-saving solutions from a material handling equipment supplier and integrate Internet of Things (IoT) technology for state-of-the-art warehouse management.

IoT Applications for Warehouses and Distribution Centers

Business technology has gone far beyond consumer applications. The IoT provides efficient and accurate ways to manage even the most complex warehouses through every step of operations.

– Products can be located at each point in the supply chain through unique ID numbers.

– Real-time data collection allows for speedier and more effective decision making.

– Data sharing across platforms and between departments is simplified.

– Detailed information can be attached to all incoming and outgoing transactions without the need for human interaction.

– Patterns can be identified and used to improve speed, accuracy and efficiency.

– Reporting, alerts and notifications are available through a number of devices.

Continuing Benefits of IoT-Equipped Warehouses

Currently, 10 percent of companies have implemented IoT systems, while another 30 percent are planning to adopt the technology. Over the next 10 years, the IoT industry is predicted to reach a global value of $8 trillion.

Companies are increasingly viewing warehouses as value streams rather than merely inventory storage. IoT systems can help create leaner systems by reducing wasted time, labor and supplies. As a result, both vendors and customers will have higher levels of confidence and satisfaction.

DJ Products: Your Complete Material Handling Equipment Supplier

Overexertion due to lifting, pulling, pushing and carrying is the number one cause of workplace injuries. We offer a comprehensive line of battery-powered pushers, tugs and movers to fit any material handling application.

Visit our website and use the convenient online chat feature for immediate assistance from our friendly and knowledgeable sales engineers.

OSHA’s Cold Stress Guide – Considerations for Warehouse Staff

Loading and Unloading Packages In the Winter can Cause Stress on Your Fingers and Other Extremities.

The Occupational Safety Health Administration (OSHA) maintains a broad directive that employers are required to provide “a workplace free from recognized hazards.” While elements such as quality material handling equipment are easy to control, cold weather presents a more abstract health risk.

OSHA recognizes cold stress as a genuine workplace hazard. Here are tips on how to recognize and prevent cold weather-related injuries and illnesses.

Common Cold Stress Conditions

– Hypothermia is a rapid loss of body heat during which body temperature drops below 95°F. A person suffering from hypothermia will shiver initially, but the shivering actually stops as the condition grows more severe.

– Frostbite results when frigid temperatures cause skin and underlying tissues to freeze. Feet and hands are most susceptible to frostbite, which is characterized by numbness and reddened skin marked with gray and white patches.

– Trench foot, sometimes referred to as immersion foot, occurs when wet feet are exposed to cold temperatures for extended periods of time. As blood vessels constrict to conserve heat, they also cut off oxygen and nutrient supplies to the skin.

Tips to Prevent Cold Stress

– Train employees to recognize and treat common cold stress symptoms.

– Make sure workers are dressed appropriately. Wearing layers of loose-fitting clothes keeps skin dry and well-insulated. Accessories such as hats, gloves and boots should also be worn.

– Cold stress can cause people to become disoriented and lose coordination. Assign workers in pairs so they can monitor each other for symptoms.

– Provide a warm break room and keep warm, sweetened beverages on hand to prevent dehydration.

Put Safety First with Material Handling Equipment from DJ Products

Electric tugs, movers and pushers such as our best-selling CartCaddyShorty improve productivity in any type of weather. Call 800.686.2651 for more information.

Cold Weather Impacts Staff Performance – What to Know

Winter Can be Dangerous for Your Employees. Make Sure They are Maintaining Safety Precautions!

Climate control in warehouses presents a greater challenge than climate control in office buildings. While the physical aspect of operating material handling equipment adds body warmth to some extent, cold weather reduces productivity and increases health risk for warehouse workers.

Train Employees to Prevent Cold Stress

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has no official regulations in place regarding cold weather conditions in the workplace. OSHA does recommend that employers take proactive steps to train about cold stress symptoms and appropriate first aid procedures.

In addition, you can institute policies to make the warehouse a more hospitable workplace during cold weather months:

– Make sure that employees are dressed for the weather and using personal protective equipment as needed.

– Have employees monitor each other for possible signs of cold stress and report problems to their supervisor.

– Provide warm break rooms and have plenty of warm, sweetened beverages on hand to ward off dehydration.

Cold-Proofing the Warehouse

No matter what temperature is maintained inside the warehouse, frequent opening of doors allows warm air to escape and be replaced by cold air. Here are steps you can take to minimize this effect:

– Strip doors allow easy in-and-out access while acting as a barrier against cold as well as dust, spray and noise.

– Temporary curtain walls insulate specific warehouse areas as needed and they’re easy to install and remove.

– High-speed doors, powered or manual, reduce the amount of exposure to the cold.

– Fans may sound counterintuitive, but they can actually circulate heated air for better distribution.

Put Safety First with Material Handling Equipment from DJ Products

Our battery-powered tugs, movers and pushers are designed for safe operation in any climate. Contact us to learn more about our quality material handling equipment.

Most Common Forklift Accidents and How to Prevent Them

Always Watch Out For Moving Equipment!

Where there are forklifts, there are forklift accidents. A person who is tired or distracted while operating one of these powerful machines can cause extensive property damage and serious personal injury. One of the best ways to prevent workplace accidents is by using the right material handling equipment for the job.

A large, bulky forklift is not always the best option for moving materials in tight areas where people are working. The following are the most common types of forklift accidents.

Forklift vs pedestrian

The pressure to achieve quotas and accomplish as much work as possible in a short amount of time can result in forklift operators driving too fast. Warehouses and production facilities have lots of obstacles and areas that pedestrians may walk from behind into the path of a fast-moving forklift.

Ongoing safety training is a must. Also, part of the routine maintenance of each forklift should include checking their maximum attainable speed. Speed governors can prevent the heavy machines from reaching high and potentially deadly speeds.

Forklift overturns

Approximately 22 percent of the people killed in forklift accidents are crushed by an overturning forklift. Overturns can happen when drivers make sharp turns at high speed. These fatal accidents can also happen easily when operating forklifts on uneven surfaces.

Proper forklift safety must be enforced. It is better to penalize an unsafe driver or revoke their forklift certification than have someone killed by their unsafe forklift operation. Loads should never be raised while the forklift is in motion. Forklifts should be driven straight up or straight down ramps at safe speeds.

At DJ Products, we specialize in providing you with the most efficient material handling equipment available to safely maximize manpower. Contact us today for a free demo.

Improve Productivity of Your Order Pickers – Part One

Improve Productivity of Your Order Pickers

In order to stay competitive and counteract flat sales, supply chain executives are being tasked with reducing labor costs while customers are ordering more frequently in smaller quantities. State-of-the-art material handling equipment is a start, but what’s the rest of the solution?

How to Maximize Order Picking Productivity

A majority of your workforce is involved in order picking, so that’s a logical place to look for areas of improvement. Here are some valuable tips for improving order picking efficiency.

One SKU per Pick Location

Each SKU should have its own individual pick location. The importance of this principle can’t be overstated. Studies show that multiple SKUs at one location can add 15 seconds per transaction.

Some warehouses slot as many as 10 SKUs in one bin location. Not only does this practice add time to the order picking process, it increases the chances of mispicks.

Implement Batch and Cluster Processes

At least half the time of an order picking job is spent in travel. With the average order coming in smaller quantities, this is a perfect opportunity to combine multiple orders that can be completed in a single pick cycle.

Pick Horizontally, Not Vertically

It’s a time-tested fact that it costs more to pick vertically than horizontally. Ideally, all pick facings should be at ground level.

Are you constrained by the dimensions of your warehouse? Wherever possible, slot the highest-velocity items at ground level and proceed vertically from lowest to highest.

Optimize Labor with Material Handling Equipment from DJ Products

Inferior material handling equipment in the warehouse can reduce both productivity and employee morale. Our best-selling CartCaddyLite and other electric tugs, pushers and movers are like adding another worker to the team.

Call 800.686.2651 for more information.

Improve Productivity of Your Order Pickers – Part Two

Improve Productivity of Your Order Pickers

When it comes to warehouses, lean and mean is the order of the day. Faced with flat or negative growth, supply chain executives are turning to updated material handling equipment and other strategies to reduce labor costs while maintaining high levels of customer service.

Here is the conclusion of our two-part look at effective tips to improve order picking efficiency.

How to Maximize Order Picking Productivity

Set Up “Hot Zones”

In an earlier tip, we talked about the importance of reducing the amount of time it takes order pickers to travel through the warehouse. One way to do that is to set up “hot zones” where higher-velocity items are concentrated.

Some companies find it useful to implement an ABC analysis that assigns items to one of three categories based on velocity. Another option is to widen the aisles where the higher-velocity items are located to prevent congestion from multiple order pickers.

Use Appropriate Storage Media

Warehouse efficiency can be measured by the number of times an item is handled from the time it arrives until the time it leaves. That rate goes up when product is stored in the wrong media, such as when slow-moving SKUs are slotted in pallet racks.

Cube movement velocity is calculated by movement in units times cubic dimensions. Use this metric to determine the optimum storage medium for each SKU.

Quality Material Handling Equipment for All Applications

Our battery-powered material handling equipment lets a single worker safely and quickly move loads weighing thousands of pounds. We have a full line of tugs, pushers and movers, including models that can accommodate awkward loads such as drums and carpet rolls.

Visit our website to learn more from a helpful member of our sales engineer team.

Warehouse Space Supply Struggles to Keep Up with Current Demand

The explosion of e-commerce has brought with it a greater need for speedy last-mile delivery. Accommodating these increase requires far more than adding material handling equipment. A recent report shows that warehouse inventory is “aging,” with supply lagging well behind demand.

The New Realities of the Warehouse Industry

In March 2018 CBRE, the world’s largest commercial real estate services and investment firm, published a report about warehouse modernization in the U.S. According to their findings, 1 billion square feet of new warehouse capacity has been added over the last 10 years, yet it makes up only 11 percent of total warehouse inventory.

In addition, these modern warehouses account for just four percent of total buildings. This is due to new warehouse structures being built approximately three times the size of existing facilities.

In the push to fulfill the needs of today’s business environment, developers are facing a dilemma. Focusing on streamlined last-mile delivery systems requires warehouses located in proximity to large urban centers and densely populated areas. Unfortunately, such land is so limited that it carries a premium price, making it difficult for developers to be profitable.

Finding Solutions

Warehouses may start growing up instead of out. Developers could take their cues from vertical and stack warehousing models used in cosmopolitan cities such as Tokyo and Hong Kong, where population sizes and real estate prices effectively prohibit conventional warehouse buildings.

Material Handling Equipment for Today’s Modern Warehouses

DJ Products offers a full line of battery-powered tugs, movers and pushers for all warehouse applications. Visit our website to learn more about state-of-the-art material handling equipment such as our popular CartCaddyLite. Sales engineers are ready to help you via our convenient online chat feature.

Top Forklift Dangers and How to Avoid Them – Part Two

Top Forklift Dangers and How to Avoid Them

Have you provided your employees with top-of-the-line material handling equipment such as our CartCaddyLite? That’s a crucial step in maximizing productivity, but it’s only part of the answer. All workers should be trained to spot safety hazards and how to avoid them.

We recently listed the top three forklift dangers along with corresponding safety tips. In this post we’re concluding with a look at the last two of the top five dangers.

Falls from Forklifts

Not all forklift injuries and fatalities are caused directly by the vehicle. A fall from a forklift can have serious results, ranging from cuts and contusions to broken bones to death.

– Institute a zero-tolerance policy for lifting workers who are standing directly on the fork.

– Always use an approved lifting cage and make sure the platform is securely attached to the fork or carriage.

– Use rails, chains, body belts or other restraining devices for the worker on the platform.

– Always lower the platform before traveling.

Shoddy or Inconsistent Maintenance

Forklifts require maintenance just as any other motorized vehicle does. Accidents due to poor maintenance are doubly tragic because they could have been prevented. In addition, your company could be liable for negligence.

– At a minimum, follow the manufacturer’s recommended maintenance schedule. You may want to have more frequent inspections based on heavy usage.

– Pull a forklift out of operation immediately if any problems are found.

Turn to DJ Products for Safe and Efficient Material Handling Equipment

Our battery-powered tugs, movers and pushers are designed to let a single employee transport loads of up to 10,000 pounds, including irregular shapes and sizes. Visit our website and use the convenient online chat feature to learn more from our friendly and knowledgeable sales engineers.

Tips for Planning a Warehouse Relocation

Whether you need a larger space, a more convenient location or a more affordable warehouse, relocating is a major move that requires careful planning. You need to ensure that all of your products, material handling equipment and other supplies are brought to the new place in good condition. Also, take care of practical matters such as adjusting your budget for the move. Keep the following tips in mind for planning your warehouse relocation:

Find the Right Location

This means weighing your options with your business needs and budget in mind. Look for locations that provide you with the space you need at a price that fits comfortably within your budget. Consider whether or not your move will require hiring new management and staff, such as if you go to a different part of the state or to another state entirely.

Keep Track of the Timeline

The amount of time it will take you to relocate depends on different factors, such as how large your business is. Plan out the steps you need to take in order to prepare for it, and keep track of the overall timeline. Work out a schedule that allows you and your staff to get everything ready for the move without having to rush.

Adjust Your Budget

Factor in expenses that you will be dealing with before, during and after the move, such as a recruitment budget for new staff. You might also need to budget for productivity loss as you move from one warehouse to another.

If you need to invest in new material handling equipment after your warehouse relocation, please contact DJ Products. We offer high-quality equipment that can help you run your warehouse as efficiently as possible.

Tag: Material Handling Equipment Supplier