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For regional grocery store chains, the last mile in logistics often ends at an individual store. Trucks use one access road, usually located behind the store, while consumers park and enter the store on the opposite side. With the tremendous consumer demand for foodstuffs of all kinds as consumers continue to cook and eat more meals at home. This demand often translates to an extraordinarily busy loading dock - an area that was already busy receiving goods before the pandemic, with employees bringing pallets into the stores for either immediate storage or restocking of shelves.

The increased activity in the loading dock proposes many challenges and potential safety hazards. Not only do loading dock employees work amongst the trucks, they also often ride lifts from the ground level to trucks to manually move the pallets of goods. For example, refrigerated trucks usually have a higher bed height than a semi or straight truck, which normally align with loading dock heights, so dock lifts can be used to move pallets from the taller refrigerated trucks to ground level before they enter the store.

For fall protection, OSHA’s Walking Working Surface rule, 1910.23, requires a barrier which can withstand 200 pounds of force be in place for any openings on working surfaces higher than 48 inches. While loading dock platforms often feature barriers for fall protection when there is no vehicle in place, loading dock lifts are most often left barrier-free, and can rise to heights greater than 48 inches, especially in the case of refrigerated trucks.

To illustrate the safety challenges, look at regional grocery chains. Every day, each individual store receives multiple deliveries of palletized goods that need to be moved into the store. Employees working in the loading dock often use lifts to unload material from the trucks and transfer it into the store. Workers riding lifts must have fall protection while they pull pallets from the trucks and transfer them to ground level. Equipment such as safety gates for dock-lifts should be automatic, providing protection as soon as the lift leaves the ground and stay locked in place until the lift is back on ground or dock level.

Another important issue is ergonomics; any safety solution must not strain an employee while they work. Employees working in grocer loading docks repeat tasks over and over again throughout the day. They are required to move pallets of material to and from the delivery trucks to the stores, and often have to lift heavy loads. Automatic, no touch operation is a very ergonomic and sanitary solution for dock lift gates - employees don’t even have to remember to use them, they move with the motion of the lift.

Individual grocery store environment also may have varying traffic patterns within the loading dock, as stores receive goods from multiple vendors, so the trucks are often different heights and lengths. Because of the traffic patterns and varying size vehicles, there is little room for extra equipment, especially that with moving parts, so safety solutions should also be configured to work within each location’s specific traffic pattern. Barriers may have to swing outward, upward or in another way to prevent operation disruptions.

These principles for providing safety solutions in last-mile logistics can also apply to larger distribution centers and food manufacturing facilities, especially in which refrigerated trucks are used. If you take time to ensure your safety e equipment works within your specific environment, you’ll improve the safety for your employees while keeping your operations intact.

This post first appeared in Food Logistics.

Speed and efficiency are goals of any business today, especially in material handing, distribution and warehousing. You must ensure your facility is operating at its highest level. With almost everything in your warehouse going online, have you considered updating your safety equipment with power operation?

Electrical power is the most popular option, but you can also tap into pneumatic systems to power protective guarding.  Power operation and complementary technologies are needed to automate your safety systems for picking and pallet drop applications.

Power operation offers no-touch safety solutions, as well as easier social distancing in material handling operations. There are many different ways to configure power and technology, from push button stations to remote control operations. There are also a host of sensors, lights, alarms and other technologies that can be added with the power to allow your safety equipment to communicate with the rest of your facility. And, the good news is you can retrofit existing safety gates with power.

How to Wisely Choose Power Systems

If you are adding power to existing protective guarding, like our safety gate systems, or purchasing new safety equipment, answer the following ten questions to ensure you select the best way to configure power for the pallet drop safety gates and other guarding for your facility.

1. Where is the safety hazard (pallet drop area, mezzanine, pick module, etc.)?
2. Are you looking for a new system or to add power to an existing system?
3. Is the area in a climate-controlled or hostile environment?
4. Is the area located in or near a wash-down area?
5. How much space is available in and around the equipment?
6. What is being loaded into the area?
7. How are employees interacting in the area and with the material?
8. How often is the safety equipment operated?
9. Are lift trucks or AGVs used in the application?
10. What automation technologies are you currently using in your facility?

A version of this post first appeared on the MHI blog.

To keep up with consumer demand, a large food manufacturing facility made changes to its facility which helped to increase production. Safety was a consideration in the changes to the production process, especially due to the strict sanitation requirements to ensure the products are safe for consumption.

The new production processes changed some employee actions; some work platform locations changed, as well as the patterns in which they moved. During a walk through of the updated facility, a safety manager noticed a potential hazard on the platforms in which ingredients are blended. Large bags are placed onto the production platform drop zone, and employees then move, open and load bags into the mixers and hoppers on the platforms. Due to the changes made in the facility, the platform around the drop zone exposed workers to an opening when the material was removed. This was the case on a number of platforms, all of which needed new safety solutions.

The company had worked with Mezzanine Safeti-Gates for fall protection solutions in the past, so they reached out to the company again. An engineering executive visited the facility to help determine which type of safety solution was the best fit for each platform.

Because of the strict sanitation requirements, the solution would need to be made of stainless steel with continuous welds. The production platform is also a wash-down environment, so the system would require no tab boltholes as well as cap ends. The executive realized lanyards were not an option because employees had to be very mobile on the platform and the sanitation requirements did not allow for that kind of solution.

Additionally, each of the areas was unique and each safety solution would require a bit of custom design work to get the exact fit. One area had limited depth, another featured overhead piping, while another drop area was extra wide. The engineer took the details back to the team, knowing that a custom design would be required.

The team from Mezzanine Safeti-Gates concluded a customized version of its High Pallet Pivot safety gate design was the overall right solution for each of the areas in the facility. With multiple pivot points built into the model, it could be designed to fit within each area.

High Pallet Pivot safety gate models can accommodate loads up to 80 inches tall, and use dual, counterbalanced gates that are interconnected with a pivoting frameworks to maintain a safe environment on the work platform. The counterbalanced framework of the gates is configured to ensure when the ledge gate is open the rear-gate is closed, keeping employees away from the ledge while material is loaded onto the platform. When the rear-gate is lifted, the ledge gate closes, protecting employees while they move the material from the drop zone into the mixer or hopper.

The stainless steel custom High Pallet Pivot safety gates were fabricated without bolt holes in the tubing to comply with sanitation needs, and installed on each of the revised production platforms the manufacturer’s facility. The company is very satisfied that the new safety systems are working to keep employees safe from falling from the ledges of the platform during the production process.

To keep up with consumer demand, a large food manufacturing facility made changes to its facility which helped to increase production. Safety was a consideration in the changes to the production process, especially due to the strict sanitation requirements to ensure the products are safe for consumption.

The new production processes changed some employee actions; some work platform locations changed, as well as the patterns in which they moved. During a walk through of the updated facility, a safety manager noticed a potential hazard on the platforms in which ingredients are blended. Large bags are placed onto the production platform drop zone, and employees then move, open and load bags into the mixers and hoppers on the platforms. Due to the changes made in the facility, the platform around the drop zone exposed workers to an opening when the material was removed. This was the case on a number of platforms, all of which needed new safety solutions.

The company had worked with Mezzanine Safeti-Gates for fall protection solutions in the past, so they reached out to the company again. An engineering executive visited the facility to help determine which type of safety solution was the best fit for each platform.

Because of the strict sanitation requirements, the solution would need to be made of stainless steel with continuous welds. The production platform is also a wash-down environment, so the system would require no tab boltholes as well as cap ends. The executive realized lanyards were not an option because employees had to be very mobile on the platform and the sanitation requirements did not allow for that kind of solution.

Additionally, each of the areas was unique and each safety solution would require a bit of custom design work to get the exact fit. One area had limited depth, another featured overhead piping, while another drop area was extra wide. The engineer took the details back to the team, knowing that a custom design would be required.

The team from Mezzanine Safeti-Gates concluded a customized version of its High Pallet Pivot safety gate design was the overall right solution for each of the areas in the facility. With multiple pivot points built into the model, it could be designed to fit within each area.

High Pallet Pivot safety gate models can accommodate loads up to 80 inches tall, and use dual, counterbalanced gates that are interconnected with a pivoting frameworks to maintain a safe environment on the work platform. The counterbalanced framework of the gates is configured to ensure when the ledge gate is open the rear-gate is closed, keeping employees away from the ledge while material is loaded onto the platform. When the rear-gate is lifted, the ledge gate closes, protecting employees while they move the material from the drop zone into the mixer or hopper.

The stainless steel custom High Pallet Pivot safety gates were fabricated without bolt holes in the tubing to comply with sanitation needs, and installed on each of the revised production platforms the manufacturer’s facility. The company is very satisfied that the new safety systems are working to keep employees safe from falling from the ledges of the platform during the production process.

To say e-commerce grew rapidly in the last year is an understatement. To keep up with demand, material handling and warehousing facilities have been changing to make operations faster and more efficient. Increasingly, pick modules are being used in order to better utilize space and cluster picking applications are being used more frequently within the systems.

Within multi-level rack supported pick modules, multiple deep pallets are pushed into pallet flow systems. In cluster picking operations, there are typically one or two flow lanes in a bay with an aisle between the lanes. Employees on the platform enter the lanes to pick from various pallets on either side of the aisle, putting items on a takeaway conveyor to be packaged and shipped.

Because the employees picking within the system are working at heights and often along pallet drop areas, it’s imperative to provide a safety system that keeps them from falling from the ledge. However, freestanding safety structures may not work within cluster picking applications in busy distribution centers or material handling facilities because there is normally little space within the rack system.

Rack supported safety gates work well within cluster picking applications in busy distribution centers or material handling facilities because of the limited space within the rack system. The dual-gate systems attach directly to the rack uprights in rack systems or pick modules, which maximizes space in the area and creates a secure connection without having to anchor the gate into the decking. The safety gate can be designed to match the depth of the pallet flow lane to capture multiple pallets.

We have recently designed two safety gate systems with cluster picking applications in mind: a Rack Supported Open Top model and the Rack Supported Roly model in a multiple pallet deep configuration.
The Rack Supported Open Top safety gate uses dual, counter-balanced gates connected on the side to maintain a safe pallet drop area at all times while operating with no overhead mechanics. When the ledge-side gate is open, allowing material to be delivered to the pallet drop area, the rear-side gate is closed, protecting the worker from falling off the ledge. When the rear side gate is raised to gain access to the pallets, the ledge-side gate closes and compacts into the rack bay, maintaining a safe environment during all stages of the operation and keeping the area clear for traffic to pass along the aisle while providing room for employees picking from pallets on either side of the lane.

The Rack Supported Open Top design prevents pallets holding the gates open when the lane is full and are ideal in areas with that feature extra tall pallet loads. The design, which can be configured for 90 degree access to pallets on both sides, can be customized to fit specific rack configurations and existing or new structures.

The Rack Supported Roly multi pallet deep safety gate configuration uses dual, counter-balanced gates to secure the ledge and keep employees out of the flow lanes while the lane is being replenished with pallets. When the ledge-side gate is open, allowing material to be delivered to the pallet drop area, the rear-side gate is closed, protecting the worker from falling off the ledge. When the rear side gate is raised to gain access to the pallets, the ledge-side gate closes flush with ledge of the rack bay, maintaining a safe environment during all stages of the operation. If the rack does not extend above the decking on the top level of the pick module or if the pallet flow lanes are located on a work platform, the gate can be designed in a free-standing model.

The extra deep dual-gate system prevents pallets holding the gates open when the lane is full and creates a completely enclosed workstation while providing fall protection for the workers in picking positions and around the empty pallet or tote return bays. The system also prevents the pallets from being pushed into the legs of the operator on the platform because they are restricted from the bay access while the areas are being loaded.

We’d love to help you make your cluster picking applications safer for your employees. Call or email us with any questions, and if you know what you need, great - just fill out our quote request form. If you don’t know what you need we’re here to help you. We’ll get right back to you with the right safety gate solution for your needs.

To say e-commerce grew rapidly in the last year is an understatement. To keep up with demand, material handling and warehousing facilities have been changing to make operations faster and more efficient. Increasingly, pick modules are being used in order to better utilize space and cluster picking applications are being used more frequently within the systems.

Within multi-level rack supported pick modules, multiple deep pallets are pushed into pallet flow systems. In cluster picking operations, there are typically one or two flow lanes in a bay with an aisle between the lanes. Employees on the platform enter the lanes to pick from various pallets on either side of the aisle, putting items on a takeaway conveyor to be packaged and shipped.

Because the employees picking within the system are working at heights and often along pallet drop areas, it’s imperative to provide a safety system that keeps them from falling from the ledge. However, freestanding safety structures may not work within cluster picking applications in busy distribution centers or material handling facilities because there is normally little space within the rack system.

Rack supported safety gates work well within cluster picking applications in busy distribution centers or material handling facilities because of the limited space within the rack system. The dual-gate systems attach directly to the rack uprights in rack systems or pick modules, which maximizes space in the area and creates a secure connection without having to anchor the gate into the decking. The safety gate can be designed to match the depth of the pallet flow lane to capture multiple pallets.

We have recently designed two safety gate systems with cluster picking applications in mind: a Rack Supported Open Top model and the Rack Supported Roly model in a multiple pallet deep configuration.
The Rack Supported Open Top safety gate uses dual, counter-balanced gates connected on the side to maintain a safe pallet drop area at all times while operating with no overhead mechanics. When the ledge-side gate is open, allowing material to be delivered to the pallet drop area, the rear-side gate is closed, protecting the worker from falling off the ledge. When the rear side gate is raised to gain access to the pallets, the ledge-side gate closes and compacts into the rack bay, maintaining a safe environment during all stages of the operation and keeping the area clear for traffic to pass along the aisle while providing room for employees picking from pallets on either side of the lane.

The Rack Supported Open Top design prevents pallets holding the gates open when the lane is full and are ideal in areas with that feature extra tall pallet loads. The design, which can be configured for 90 degree access to pallets on both sides, can be customized to fit specific rack configurations and existing or new structures.

The Rack Supported Roly multi pallet deep safety gate configuration uses dual, counter-balanced gates to secure the ledge and keep employees out of the flow lanes while the lane is being replenished with pallets. When the ledge-side gate is open, allowing material to be delivered to the pallet drop area, the rear-side gate is closed, protecting the worker from falling off the ledge. When the rear side gate is raised to gain access to the pallets, the ledge-side gate closes flush with ledge of the rack bay, maintaining a safe environment during all stages of the operation. If the rack does not extend above the decking on the top level of the pick module or if the pallet flow lanes are located on a work platform, the gate can be designed in a free-standing model.

The extra deep dual-gate system prevents pallets holding the gates open when the lane is full and creates a completely enclosed workstation while providing fall protection for the workers in picking positions and around the empty pallet or tote return bays. The system also prevents the pallets from being pushed into the legs of the operator on the platform because they are restricted from the bay access while the areas are being loaded.

We’d love to help you make your cluster picking applications safer for your employees. Call or email us with any questions, and if you know what you need, great - just fill out our quote request form. If you don’t know what you need we’re here to help you. We’ll get right back to you with the right safety gate solution for your needs.