\nTL;DR \u2013 Conveyors improve ergonomics in truck loading and unloading<\/h4>\n Manual loading and unloading creates major ergonomic risks, from bending low to overhead reaching. Extendable and adjustable conveyors help workers by reducing strain, saving time, and making trailer transitions faster, safer, and less labor-intensive.<\/p>\n<\/aside>\n
Extendable conveyors are the preferred method for trailer-warehouse transitions<\/h3>\n Using extendable systems works very well by creating the transition you need between conveyor lines and docks. It’s constantly done in a variety of industries, particularly where the truck must be cubed out with cartons. Without an extendable conveyor, companies must manually remove cartons from the conveyor line and then move them afoot into the trailer, which is an extremely labor-intensive process with terrible ergonomics.<\/p>\n
This is a spot where automation works right up to the point of use: most of the time, people are required to remove boxes from the conveyor and stack them logically into the trailer.<\/p>\n
Most over-the-road truck trailers are 110 inches tall (internal), and 100 inches wide. Workers have two issues to contend with: first, that’s a lot<\/em> of area to cover and most of it isn’t in the ergonomic golden zone between their knees and chest. Secondly, they are also expected to stack cartons in logical sequences that reduce product damage and facilitate unloading.<\/p>\nIf you’re receiving carton-filled\u00a0 trailers, you’re doing the opposite–pulling cartons out of a stacked trailer and placing them on an extendable conveyor, the same issues exist in reverse.<\/p>\n
Lower vs. higher volume<\/h4>\n If you’re operating at lower volumes, manual methods may be adequate. Palletizing cartons, then moving them into or out of a trailer with a pallet jack can work well for LTL shipments in lower volumes. But if you’re shipping out significant volumes of cartons for retail or ecommerce distribution, that quickly becomes labor-intensive and slow.<\/p>\n
\nIf you’re stacking cartons up to the full height of a trailer, then people are reaching well above their heads to position them.<\/li>\n That reach can pose significant ergonomic problems, particularly at high volumes and with heavier cartons that can strain workers.<\/li>\n If you’re stacking to the floor, then workers are bending over while holding cartons in potentially awkward positions.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nThe average person has an overhead grip of 71 inches. This means that the top layer or two of any trailer will require them to reach higher than recommended to cube out.<\/p>\n
Adjusting trailer loading & unloading to ergonomic heights<\/h3>\n
Optimizing the height dimension to reduce stretching, strains and bending<\/h4>\n Ergonomic, adjustable truck-loading conveyors<\/a> let workers adapt to the task in two different, ways: First, they can elevate the worker vertically, which puts an end to the overhead reach problem. Secondly, its conveyor adjusts to match the height of the current layer of cartons to be stacked or unstacked. In both ways, it reduces the stresses and strains of dealing with scores of cartons in truck trailers.<\/p>\nThe system is portable, so warehouses do not necessarily need to have one available for every dock door.<\/p>\n
Videos<\/h3>\n
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