When you think of warehouse equipment, you probably think of scissors lifts, forklifts, conveyor belts and trash or cardboard compactors. This stuff is pretty standard, and it is unusual to walk into a warehouse that does not have these pieces of equipment in it. However, there are other pieces of equipment that are not so standard, but they really should be, and with good reason. Here are just a few things you should invest in for your own warehouse and why you should invest in them.
Ergonomic Back Support Belts
While your warehouse may have several mechanical pieces of equipment for lifting heavy objects, the fact remains that your crew that unloads trucks is probably lifting many things on their own. All the best employee training videos cannot prevent injuries if your crew does not have the right equipment to protect their backs when they lift. Investing in ergonomic back support belts accomplishes three things:
- Your employees have added support to maintain proper alignment when lifting heavy items off the truck or the floor.
- The criss-cross straps across the back and over the front support the shoulders and keep posture erect so there are fewer shoulder and/or neck injuries.
- There are fewer injuries overall when the belts are used properly and consistently, which saves your company a lot of money.
You should have one ergonomic back support lifting belt for every member of your crew, and each belt should fit the owner perfectly to obtain the maximum benefit of this investment.
Anti-Fatigue Mats or Anti-Fatigue Footwear
Most warehouse floors are made of slab concrete. While this works great for the heavy traffic and abuse from the forklifts, pallet jacks and scissors lifts your crew uses, it is brutal on the human feet and skeletal structure. Combined with improprer footwear at work and your employees are probably wiped out before halfway points in their shifts. To defeat the fatigue felt by everyone on the workfloor, you can invest in anti-fatigue mats for times when your crew is mostly standing or working in one place. These rubbery mats cushion footfalls and do not allow any tiring or jarring sensations up the backs of the legs. If your warehouse floors just are not conducive to mats (even though you can pick them up and move them around), then you might want to consider anti-fatigue footwear instead. The soles of these shoes and workboots typically do the same thing that the mats do, only the anti-fatigue technology follows your crew everywhere because it is on the bottoms of their feet.
