Tag: production tips

Five Best Practices to Increase Warehouse Productivity

Be a Great Manager and Do What's Best for Your Workers.
Be a Great Manager and Do What’s Best for Your Workers.

To get the most from your warehouse operation and remain competitive, you must constantly look for ways to increase efficiency with minimum costs. Best practices vary by industry, but these five tips can help you improve productivity and save money by minimizing the risk of injury to your workers.

1. Organization is crucial

When your warehouse is divided into zones, it simplifies the process of picking and reslotting. You can better manage workflow and more easily spot areas that need improvement.

2. Automate when possible

Innovations in technology make automation more affordable. Stay current with advancements for your industry and invest in applications that will provide the best ROI. Our motorized industrial carts and industrial tugs make each of your employees more productive and minimize the risks of personal injuries and product damage.

3. Optimal lighting for optimal efficiency

The amount of light needed varies according to the task being done. Poor lighting will affect the quality of work and can lead to accidents or health hazards like eye strain and headaches.

4. Cycle counting for inventory control

You can improve the overall operation of your warehouse with a cycle counting process. Do it every day to ensure accuracy and better inventory control.

5. Maintain employee comfort

Studies show that productivity improves when employees know their managers and company care about them. Our industrial tugs make it easier and safer to move heavy products in tight spaces.

Regardless of the size of your warehouse or your material handling equipment needs, we have the right solution for you. Visit our website to view our wide selection of affordable, battery-powered tugs and pushers.

What It Will Take to Succeed in Business in 2009

A small business owner I admired embodied three qualities that got him through many tough times in the material handling business: innovation, positive thinking and hard work. These same qualities can help us weather the current storm successfully.

Innovation. A great believer in innovation, my friend was the first in his region to buck the industry and offer new electric-powered forklift trucks and hand-operated movers when they first came on the market. Decades ago he foresaw the advantages of cleaner, more efficiently powered material handling equipment. Had he still been in business, he’d have been among the first to embrace safer, ergonomically-designed, even more energy efficient, battery-operated material handling equipment. Embracing new technology as it becomes available positions you to reap the rewards of improved energy efficiency, increased maneuverability, innovative safety features and greater flexibility of use.

Positive thinking. Even during tough times, my friend was a great believer in the power of positive thinking. He ran his business and lived his life in accordance with a quote from Henry Ford that he kept prominently displayed on his desk: “Whether you think that you can, or that you can’t, you are usually right.” My friend would have been the first to see the opportunities in a depressed market. Bargains abound for the savvy businessman. This can be a good time to expand your territorial or product base by partnering with or buying out a faltering competitor. Depression of the construction industry has led to aggressive pricing in commercial markets making this a good time to build or expand facilities. This can also be a prime time to upgrade your technology. Many firms are offering unbeatable deals or deferred payments to stimulate business. Plant and business closures are also creating great deals on used equipment.

Hard work. My friend knew that positive thinking alone never accomplished anything. No slouch when it came time to roll up his sleeves and get dirty, another favorite saying was, “God helps those who help themselves.” To survive the current recession, you’re going to have to be innovative, flexible and forward thinking; but you’re also going to have to reign in unnecessary expenses, tighten up financial practices, maximize worker and production efficiency, and work hard to stay ahead of the competition.

Preventing Heat Injury

As summer heats up, heat can affect workers’ health and slow production. Heat illnesses like heat exhaustion and heat stroke (see our June 24 post) are serious and can even be life-threatening. Fortunately precautions can be taken to prevent heat injury by following these suggestions from the Centers for Disease Control:

  • Reduce the physical demands of the job by using powered equipment to perform heavy tasks. DJ Products powered carts and movers are the perfect solution to take the strain off workers when materials, equipment, products or supplies must be moved from one place to another. Ergonomic design eliminates muscle strain, fatigue and physical stress, protecting the health and safety of your workers. Our battery powered CartCaddies do the heavy labor so your workers don’t overexert themselves in the heat.
  • Wear loose clothing to promote air flow and a hat to shield yourself from the sun. When uniforms must be worn, natural-fiber, breathable fabrics like cotton provide better management of body heat. Certain newer fabrics are available that help wick sweat away from the body, keeping the body cooler in summer and warmer in winter.
  • Decrease work exposure or, when exposure cannot be avoided, the length of exposure to high heat and humidity. Shorten shifts for high exposure jobs or rotate tasks to decrease exposure periods.
  • Use fans to decrease humidity and increase air speed to allow maximum evaporative cooling from sweating.
  • Provide shade in work areas where possible and certainly in break areas.
  • Drink plenty of fluids and replenish salt and minerals lost during sweating. This is why sports figures drink Gatorade and similar beverages that contain salt and minerals. Salty snacks at break times can also help. Water should be continually available to workers during periods of high heat and humidity, and a worker’s request for water should not be denied.

Worker complaints about feeling ill or dizzy when temperatures soar should not be taken lightly. Cool water (sipped slowly); a break in a cool, air conditioned room; and application of cool, wet cloths to the skin will help. But anyone who complains should be carefully watched for additional signs of heat illness. Be aware that some medications exacerbate the effects of heat on the body, a possible side effect about which many people are unaware. If a heat injury victim does not respond to basic first aid, if vomiting occurs, the person loses consciousness, or if his body temperature continues to rise and sweating ceases, call 911 or get the victim to a hospital immediately.

Help Workers Beat the Heat

The dog days of August aren’t here yet but the nationwide heat wave means it’s time to review heat safety tips to prevent heat exhaustion and heat stroke. When workers don’t work in temperature controlled environments, heat can take a toll on workers’ health, cause production to suffer and even be life-threatening when workers and managers do not take proper precautions to manage heat stress.

Sweat is the body’s cooling system. As air passes over the body, it evaporates sweat, cooling the body. But during hot weather, particularly if the humidity is high, sweating can’t keep up. Body temperature rises faster than sweating can cool it down. When body temperatures get too hot, heat illness and even death can occur. Older, overweight and pregnant workers are most at risk of heat illnesses, which include:

  • Heat rash where the skin becomes irritated from excessive sweating. Tightly fitting clothing can exacerbate heat rash and the individual’s discomfort.
  • Heat cramps are painful muscle pains or spasms, generally in the abdomen and legs, brought on by exertion or exercise during prolonged exposure to high temperatures. Heat cramps are often the first sign that the body is not coping with high temperatures.
  • Heat exhaustion occurs when body fluids are lost through heavy sweating and not replaced. In an effort to cool the body, blood flow to the skin is increased, drawing it away from vital organs and causing mild shock. Heat exhaustion is evidenced by extreme lethargy, heavy sweating, rapid breathing and a fast, weak pulse. If not treated, it can lead to dangerous heat stroke.
  • Heat stroke (also called sun stroke) is a life-threatening condition indicating that the body’s natural cooling mechanism has completely broken down and ceased functioning. Body temperatures can rise above 106 degrees Fahrenheit, high enough to cause brain damage. Sweating stops and the skin becomes dry to the touch. The individual’s pulse begins to race, becoming strong and rapid. Heat stroke victims can become dizzy, particularly dangerous if they are operating equipment. If untreated, unconsciousness, permanent brain damage and death can follow.

Next time: Preventing and treating heat injury