BROADCASTS.com

b'It\\u2019s Thursday again, I\\u2019m Marty and we\\u2019ve reached the last week of the 1st quarter. Time\\u2019s flying by and we\\u2019re having a blast talking about Operations each week with you, keep those questions, comments and topic suggestions coming in, we have a lot of fun putting each episode together with you. So, today let\\u2019s talk about some of those questions and topics here at Warehouse and Operations as a Career.
\\nOne of the questions I\\u2019ve enjoyed looking into was about the series of equipment, commonly referred to as Stackers, at least around here. The question was What are they? Stackers, typically are used in very narrow aisle situations, short aisled warehouses where the need for heavy productivity or product movement isn\\u2019t really necessary. Think of a Walkie Electric Jack that can raise a pallet to the 3rd or even the 4th level of your storage system or racking. Very maneuverable in tight spaces or on uneven surfaces, great for the smaller operations. There\\u2019s several manufacturers and many different models, some of them are really cool machines. I\\u2019ve seen several different types with different weight capacities, some even use counterbalance weights and I\\u2019ve seen some with different outrigger configurations for different pallet types and loads. Due to them being a Walkie a 29cfr1910.178 certification or training is not required but I suggest them & I strongly urge employees and employer\\u2019s to attend or require a class if your using any style of powered equipment to move freight. I feel the same hazards exist, feet, ankles and hands can be injured and of course one needs to be aware of our surroundings, stack height, load distribution, especially on ramps or uneven surfaces. I\\u2019ve seen too many fingers or hands get pinched against uprights when we\\u2019re turning or ankle injuries and feet getting pinned against the bottom rails. Of course any good Safety program and a strong Safety Culture can help keep us aware and on our toes! Stackers are great machines and their use is pretty versatile, I like them for the environments they can perform well with. I\\u2019ll reach out to a Stacker Rep and see if we can\\u2019t hear from the experts about where their selling them, what industries really utilize them well and learn about all the advantages and uses they have.
\\nLast week we spoke about Safety Culture, one of the examples I spoke too was speaking up if you notice a step has been skipped or something that\\u2019s written in your procedures or process isn\\u2019t being done. A young gentleman stated he\\u2019s pretty uncomfortable pointing out when his team\\u2019s start-up meeting is skipped, or their stretches aren\\u2019t done. There\\u2019s always going to be the exception, somethings going to come up, a heavy shift, our Supervisor gets tied up in a meeting etc. Our procedures and processes are written, that\\u2019s what makes them important. If we say we\\u2019re doing something, it\\u2019s important that we do them and document them. If an inspector or auditor does come in that\\u2019s what their looking for, what we say we\\u2019re doing vs what we have documentation for. I love this train of thought, what a great way to get noticed by our management team. There\\u2019s absolutely nothing wrong with taking charge and giving them a piece of paper, even if it\\u2019s just something like \\u201ctoday we talked about being careful on the equipment and lift properly when handling the cases.\\u201d You can do it in such a way that your peers won\\u2019t think anything about it, don\\u2019t be too official or try being the boss but hey, just start stretching and mention to a few people around you to be careful and let\\u2019s not have any injuries today. Write it on a piece of paper and give it to your boss. He or She then has documented meeting notes! You\\u2019ll get the Star award that day and more importantly your boss will be impressed you had his or her back! They may not say so but I honestly believe they\\u2019ll be very appreciative!
\\nLet\\u2019s see, here\\u2019s another comment about productivity. I work for productivity pay,'