October is National Ergonomics Month, a time to spotlight the importance of arranging equipment and systems in the workplace to make them more efficient and safer for people to use.
As more companies turn to automation to address labor and consumer demand issues, it’s important to know that in addition to bottom-line benefits like increased productivity and profits, automated solutions have inherent benefits such as less physical exertion that leads to increased personal safety and greater job satisfaction.
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health lists the three leading causes of work-related injuries seen in emergency departments as:
- Contact with objects and equipment
- Overexertion and bodily reaction
- Falls, slips and trips
When it comes to occupations with the highest incidence rates for workplace injuries, many are found in warehouse, manufacturing and transportation environments, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Protecting the health and safety of workers through improved ergonomic design has been a focus of material handling equipment manufacturers for the past several years. For example, adjustable seats, seat-side hydraulic controls, rear-assist grip and horn, and tilting steering columns have become common forklift features.
Automation solutions such as conveyors, automated storage and retrieval systems, pallet shuttles and automated guided vehicles (AGVs) take the reduction of ergonomic risk factors to an even higher level by eliminating tasks such as bending, reaching overhead, performing repetitive motions and lifting, pushing and pulling heavy loads.
Often portrayed as an adversary to warehouse workers who feared being replaced, automated technology today is perceived as an ally that can make their jobs easier, more fulfilling and safer, according to a recent survey of 500 U.S. warehouse workers commissioned by Lucas Systems.
The Lucas Systems Voice of the Warehouse Worker Insights found that technology is critical for employee attraction and retention, with 74 percent of respondents saying they were willing to trade pay for better technology tools to do their jobs and 88 percent saying that investing in automation is an investment in the company’s workforce.
Survey respondents ranked the benefits of automation in the workplace as follows:
- Increases the ability to meet performance goals
- Improves accuracy and minimize mistakes
- Makes jobs less physically demanding
- Increases personal safety
- Makes jobs more exciting and high-tech
- Demonstrates that the company cares about is workers
- Helps workers learn a new skill set
Automating the transfer of materials from one location to another within a facility is one of the most effective ways to minimize workplace injury by reducing the need for manual lifting, pushing, pulling and stretching. It also can help lower the risk of musculoskeletal injuries.
According to the Occupational Health and Safety Administration, about 25 percent of all reported warehouse injuries occur on loading docks, with most of those injuries a result of slip-and-falls, lifting/pushing/pulling/reaching and forklift accidents.
Portable ergonomic conveyor systems such as Destuff-it™ are designed to help dock associates safely and quickly move packages up to 165 pounds. They can be used on inbound and outbound docks and have a modular belt that can travel in one direction or bidirectionally.
The risk of on-the-job accidents also decreases drastically with the use of automated mobile robots (AMRs). Workers are no longer lifting packages in non-ergonomic positions; rather, the AMR ventures into the warehouse to retrieve products and bring them to their human coworkers.
Mobile robots autonomously navigate around humans and obstacles along their path while calculating the best route to their defined destination. In many cases, AMRs are the best way to optimize both workplace productivity and safety.
Vertical lift modules (VLMs) also address overexertion concerns by delivering stored items to an operator at a comfortable height, eliminating the time and energy spent searching, walking, reaching and bending to pick components.
Following the parts to picker’s principle, these automated storage and retrieval systems reduce walking time for parts retrieval up to 90 percent when compared with static shelving.
Learn more about automation solutions from Carolina Handling.
