The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has had its campaign spotlight focused firmly on manual handling for some time – not least because musculoskeletal disorders remain the most common occupational illness in the UK and manual handling injuries play a contributory role.
Manual handling equipment is a commonly-used term, but in fact is something of a misnomer. It is, after all, mechanical handling equipment that, when installed, removes the need for manual handling. Nonetheless, manual handling equipment it is, and, whether prompted by the lure of greater efficiency or the threat of future litigation, businesses are buying more and more of this kit each year.
Whether it’s pulling, pushing, lifting or lowering, it’s no longer sensible (or even legal, in some cases) to expect your workforce to take the strain.
MasterMover supply manual handling equipment and specifically pedestrian tug units. All are designed and manufactured in Ashbourne, Derbyshire, and used in diverse applications from automotive plants to food and drink manufacturers.
Profine UK contacted MasterMover to solve a manual handling problem and boost storage efficiency. The company manufactures plastic profiles for windows and doors. Profine needed a solution for moving products around its 55,000ft² facility.
As Stefan Seidel, Operations Manager, explains: “It was vital to have facilities where we could store our stillages in a more efficient way. But we then needed a pedestrian tug of some sort to make the best use of them. We looked at a number of solutions and suppliers, before choosing MasterMover. We were not only given a clever solution that worked, but they were also prepared to customise the equipment for our needs.”
Using a MasterTug gives one person the ability to pull 6,500 kg stillages stacked six high. The amount of product that can be stored in the warehouse is far greater without needing to leave space for a conventional forklift.
Hugh Freer, Sales Director, believes customers usually contact MasterMover for one of two reasons. “The first is focusing on staff welfare and morale; they are looking for safer and easier ways to handle goods. Their whole approach is ‘safety first’ and they assess risk of each operation and task. Others are more reactive; they approach us because they’ve been asked to by their staff, because there has been a near miss or, worse still, an actual incident.”