Editor’s Note: This is second of two articles about the Materials Handling Institute’s upcoming report on industry trends. The first part was published Wednesday, November 13. The Materials Handling Institute, formerly known as the Materials handling Industry Association, has compiled a report entitled, “US Roadmap for Material Handling & Logistics” which outlines the trade organizations expectations … Read more
Editor’s Note: This is the first of two articles about the Materials Handling Institute’s upcoming report on industry trends. The second article will be published Friday, November 15. Forecasting the future of the materials handling industry, an industry trade group recently unveiled what it believes will be the 10 guiding trends of the next decade. … Read more
An increasing number of states and municipalities are limiting or banning indoor smoking. According to the Nonsmokers Rights Foundation, as of April of 2013, about 81.3% of all Americans live under a ban on smoking in “workplaces, and/or restaurants, and/or bars, by either a state, commonwealth of local law.” For owners of manufacturing and warehousing facilities, … Read more
Workers are sometimes reluctant to use hard hats, even though their use is required in any type of construction area. But if you can do a good job of communicating to your employees why hard hat safety is essential, it’s often possible to reduce this resistance and get all of your employees on board with … Read more
Packaging hasn’t changed all that much in the past 50 years, with cardboard and plastic playing a central role in packaging materials. But over the course of the next few decades, at least one expert says there could be radical changes ahead. During a recent presentation at the Material Handling and Logistics Conference, in Park City, Utah, … Read more
Employee lockers provide a legal grey area for employers: Are they the property of the employer or the employee? Do employers have a right to search employee lockers or is it an invasion of worker’s privacy? If there is no clear-cut policy that has been drawn up by management and provided to employees, the simple … Read more
Trash and clutter are the enemy of any efficient business. So having adequate waste receptacles available in your manufacturing or warehouse facility is critical to streamlined and profitable operations. Waste receptacles, also known as trash cans or waste bins, come in many different shapes, sizes and colors. Some are portable and have two or four wheels … Read more
Disasters can be natural or man-made. They can strike without notice, like a fire or hurricane, or can be seen coming from a long way off, such as a work stoppage. But all disasters have one thing in common: They can cause a suspension in your normal business operations. Effective disaster planning can shorten the amount of … Read more
Air compressors have multiple functionality. In domestic use, they can be used to inflate basketballs, footballs and other sporting equipment, air mattresses and even automobile and bicycle tires. In industrial applications, compressed air can be used to operate machinery, for manufacturing operations, for cleaning, for eliminating pollutants from a confined workspace, and many other uses. … Read more
An examination of the ergonomics of workers’ movement can improve productivity, reduce the amount of workplace injuries, and lower costs, according to a report compiled by the California Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Whenever materials are handled in a warehouse, manufacturing facility or other workplace, there is always the opportunity for wasted energy, wasted time, … Read more
