Further, increased downtime means lowered productivity. Not having trained material handling labor means increased production line inefficiencies. These inefficiencies may cause you to run out of raw material or overstuff your product inventory. While interrupted raw material supply brings your production down, overstocking decrease your cash flow and results in additional expenses to store extra materials. You can get the most out of your lifting and handling material equipment, provided you choose the right one.
Considering the sizable cost of lifting devices and hardware, it needs to be as adaptable and flexible as possible. You should be able to use it on more than one type of terrain and handle more than one type of material. It should have enough load capacity to handle the desired load.
If the machine exceeds the required load capacity, you will end up paying exorbitant fuel and labor costs. Under Capacity, on the other hand, will cause damage or even fatal accidents. The size, shape, weight, fragility, and type solid, liquid, gas of the load will also affect the choice of your equipment. The equipment also needs to have sufficient power and speed to move the desired load without causing any damage or accidents.
Space availability is also a critical factor in selecting material handling equipment. For example, low ceiling heights may prevent you from using overhead cranes, while pillar and columns might restrict the movement of large trucks or forklifts. Take a closer look at your work site before investing in a piece of equipment. The final consideration is the cost. You need to consider everything, from the upfront buying cost to operating and maintenance expenses along with the skilled labor cost.
Make sure to calculate and compare all these costs before taking the final call. Regardless of the equipment you use, considering the following material handling principles will help you design an efficient system. Although automated material handling systems will help you improve overall efficiency and productivity, it requires a substantial initial investment.
You need to check various overheads associated with your industrial lifting and handling setup. If you can identify and optimize the following hidden costs involved in material handling, you will be able to keep your overall expenses down. When driving down the cost and increasing productivity, you must not ignore workplace safety. Accidents will not only result in economic losses but also ruin your brand reputation. So, you need to think about ensuring workplace safety.
Getting the right material handling equipment and using it to maximize your productivity can be tedious. You need an experienced, resourceful, and knowledgeable partner to help with your rigging hardware needs. Holloway Houston, Inc. With over professionals, our ISO certified organization will get your lifting project up and running in no time. Bridon is a recognized name in steel ropes, synthetic slings and fiber ropes. We manufacture a wide variety of wire rope slings, synthetic slings, alloy chain slings, and other premier lifting appliances for a variety of industries including energy, construction, oil and gas, and mining.
From mooring sockets and swivels to IP clamps, you can order all Crosby shackles and products virtually anytime, from anywhere, with guaranteed delivery. We have also partnered with leading OEM manufacturers in the industrial lifting sector from around the world, bringing you a plethora of material handling products, equipment, and services at the most affordable rates.
Our dedicated, experienced, and highly professional team makes sure your orders get delivered on time, and you get a comprehensive solution for all your lifting, rigging, and material handling projects. Choosing the right lifting devices and rigging hardware is easier said than done. You need to have in-depth knowledge of industrial lifting and handling equipment to improve your productivity, boost safety, and lower operating costs.
Hopefully, this guide will help you make smart choices when it comes to material handling. If you have any doubts or questions, feel free to connect with us. Holloway Houston Inc. The answer to all these questions is material handling. The world market encompassed over 1. On the other hand, the Asia-Pacific material handling equipment market has witnessed substantial growth, thanks to the rapid adoption of advanced technologies including industrial automation, IoT and big data.
Read on to know more. Manual vs Automatic Material Handling Equipment Material handling equipment is a piece of machinery that allows you to move or lift materials from one place to another. Manual MHE. Consider ergonomic factors like repetitive motions and awkward positions.
Manual handling is prone to errors which may lead to frequent downtime. Automated MHE. Objectives of a Material Handling System — Reasons to Advanced Lifting Devices The industrial material handling process, like any other industrial process, requires a set of clear-cut objectives or goals.
Categories of Material Handling Equipment Material handling equipment is a broad term that encompasses a variety of elements: tools ex. Drive-through racks that are similar to drive-in racks, but they are open at both ends. Push-back racks provide gravity-based movement of the loads, allowing deep-reach storage without extended reach mechanisms. Sliding racks have sliding rows of racks along guide rails on the floor. Industries Where Material Handling Equipment Is Used Material handling equipment finds applications in the following industries, serving specific functions in each of them.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Material Handling Equipment Most industries use material handling equipment owing to their numerous benefits. It reduces the movement of material and creates a steady flow, resulting in reduced labor costs and shorter operating cycles. It eliminates redundancies like backtracking and re-handling, saving money and time. It increases overall workplace safety owing to advanced automation and reduces the damage to materials during movement.
It increases worker efficiency by making optimal use of raw materials, labor, energy, and time. This, in turn, increases productivity. It helps build a streamlined workflow that can adapt to the changing market demand reducing over or underutilization of labor and resources. Further, it leads to better-quality products and timely production, resulting in higher profits. It requires a sizeable upfront investment in addition to the present expenses.
Not all material handling equipment comes with the flexibility to handle customizations in the long run. In an integrated system, the failure of one element can bring the entire system to a standstill.
Principles of Material Handling Regardless of the equipment you use, considering the following material handling principles will help you design an efficient system.
Plan everything from how, when, and where the material moves and gets stored including the potential delays, downtime, and contingencies in your system. Build equipment layout and operation process to optimize the material flow. Choose a unit size or a load of material based on the right weight, size, cost, durability, and ease of use. Use all the cubic space for storage, conveyors, and material handling equipment efficiently.
Standardize handling methods as well as types and sizes of handling equipment wherever possible. Design the system to ensure effective interaction between human operators and the equipment by acknowledging human capabilities and limitations.
Try to use processes and equipment that will help reduce environmental pollution as much as possible. Mechanize the handling process wherever possible to reduce manual errors and labor costs. Use flexible processes and equipment that can handle a variety of tasks under different operating conditions, enabling a better return on investment.
Reduce unnecessary and uneconomical processes or equipment to simplify the system for better productivity. Use gravity to move material wherever possible to reduce energy consumption or labor cost. Create safety guidelines, provide safety training, and follow existing safety codes and regulations when setting up and operating the system. Consider automation wherever possible to ensure improved material handling, better information control, and reduced labor costs. Ensure optimal integration of the data flow with the physical material flow throughout the system.
Use technologies such as RFID and barcode to keep track of your inventory and equipment savings operating and inspection costs and increasing accuracy and reliability. Consider and compare the costs of various alternatives for material handling equipment and methods for better productivity and profit. Plan long-term proactive maintenance and schedule repairs to improve equipment life and performance and reduce passive maintenance costs and downtimes.
If your company or factory has any of these requirements, an industrial conveyor is definitely something you should invest in. Established in , it offers waste management solutions across the United States. Please send your query by filling out the form below. Facebook Facebook. Previous Next. Facebook 0 Tweet 0 Pin 0 LinkedIn 0. Compactor Management Company.
Related Posts. Permalink Gallery What is Sustainability in Business? Lifting with poor technique can be described as making end range bending movements while performing working tasks.
As a result, the spine is not adequately protected by its muscles, potentially making it unstable. Moreover, additional activation of muscles may increase metabolic cost and consequently contribute to associated muscle fatigue, leading to injury. When the body holds a single or awkward position, for an extended period or shifts position but fails to allow the muscles to return to a neutral place, comfort and performance are impaired.
Static postures increase the load on muscles and tendons compared to dynamic postures. These static positions may reduce blood flow to the muscles, thus preventing the body from engaging in the natural process of restoration and repair. To avoid the body being stressed there are several best practices that can be put in place to inhibit tissue damage resulting in injury:.
This gives the worker more chance to avoid potential injuries by self-adjusting when they feel they are moving into an unsafe zone. Fitting the task to the human is not always possible owing to environmental limitations, or lack of appropriate technology or equipment. There is also difficulty for an assessor to truly understand the task as they lack expertise in the work.
The worker understands the task, but often lacks the awareness of the risks involved. The ideal scenario of engineering out hazards or eliminating them is ultimate but many industries remain reliant on manual workers to have the awareness and ability to do the job in ways that do not risk their musculoskeletal health. Equipping workers with the learning tools and capacity to feel responsible for their own bodies and movement can help bridge the gap between limitations in the designed task and musculoskeletal safety.
OHSA advises to control ergonomic hazards it is essential to continue to adhere to the following:. Eliminate the hazard — using engineering controls to remove the risk factors. Some examples include redesigning workstations, adjustable tables, providing carts and mechanical hoists, appropriate tools that decrease awkward hand positioning, and alter storage of equipment.
Improve work policies and procedures — using administrative controls. Examples include, job rotations, increase staffing, frequency of breaks, encouraging safe lifting techniques and provide good training, follow good housekeeping practices i. Provide personal protective equipment — if risk factors are unable to be eliminated through redesign or procedures, providing equipment such as knee pads, should pads and gloves can assist with preventing injury.
Establish a comprehensive ergonomics program — Elements of a good program include:. Installing ergonomic interventions and best practices into the design plan of a task and using good safety management processes can assist to reduce the risk of injuries. Not only does this have a positive impact on the employee but greatly benefits the organization as a whole.
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