Manufacturing

When properly engineered, custom warehouse equipment promotes better ergonomics and enhances storage. Generally, that means more profitability and fewer bottlenecks for your operation.

Vertical material handling is always a challenge. Raising a loaded pallet to mezzanine-level with a forklift can be risky and time-consuming. Freight elevators require costly inspections and frequent, expensive maintenance. It’s not always possible—and it’s rarely safe—to have employees carry heavy loads up and down stairs.

There are many ways to move materials and equipment from one elevation to another: scissor lifts, lift trucks, spiral conveyors, and more. For many warehouses, distribution centers, manufacturing plants, and other industrial facilities, however, vertical reciprocating conveyors (VRCs) provide the greatest combination of benefits. These include improved safety, higher throughput, and an overall boost in productivity.

Loss of electrical materials at a job site isn’t just the contractor’s problem. If electrical wholesalers don’t package or prepare orders adequately, these products are more vulnerable to damage and theft. With enough lost product, electrical contractors may start looking for a new supplier.

In 2020, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics found that the injury rate in warehousing was significantly higher than the average for all industries: 4.8 injuries per 100 workers in warehousing and storage, versus 2.7 per 100 for all industries combined. In an effort to improve warehouse safety and bring down these injury rates, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced a five-year initiative beginning in August 2022. It’s called the Regional Emphasis Program (REP) for Warehousing Operation.

Academically, ergonomics is the study of work and how it interacts with the human body. As an applied science, ergonomics involves matching the work to the worker. The goal is to eliminate discomfort and injury on the job.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requires most employers to record workplace injuries and illnesses. (Some relatively safe industries, and small businesses with fewer than 11 employees, are exempt from OSHA record-keeping rules.) But OSHA has different requirements for different types of injuries.

If you rent forklift batteries, you probably prefer to handle maintenance yourself. Reliable forklift batteries keep customers coming back — and regular service is essential for battery health. Besides, those batteries aren’t just sources of motive power. They’re also core business assets. Protecting them is also protecting your bottom line.

Looking for tips on growing your electrical wholesaling business in 2022 and beyond? Here are lessons from some of the year’s top sellers.

Proactive ergonomics improves workplace safety, but that’s just one of the benefits. It can also cut costs to help your business grow.