Along with Paper Shredding Equipment, Document Destruction Services Look for Material Handling Solutions

You've acquired a facility, industrial paper shredding equipment, and all the hoppers and balers you could ever need. What other machinery will you need to get your document shredding service off the ground?

The answer, as in so many industries, is ergonomic material handling equipment. Commercial document shredders often handle hundreds of tons of fiber every month. When they sell bales of shredded ledger to recycling operations, those bales usually weigh at least half a ton each. These are considerable loads, and without appropriate tools, you might submit staff to significant ergonomic risks.

Here are the basic types of material handling equipment you'll need to handle loose, shredded, and baled paper:

1. Electric Forklifts

Forklifts are the workhorses of the recycling industry. Indoor shredding facilities should choose electric forklifts to eliminate emissions. Electric forklifts also require a designated battery charging area; dependable, quick battery changes are essential to maintain operational efficiency.

Battery Carts and Carriages from Solus Group can help to keep electric forklifts moving bales onto trucks across multiple shifts.

2. Bale Clamp Fork Attachments

Once bales are loaded onto pallets, forklift operators can handle them with typical lift trucks. But you'll need a way to lift loose bales, too, even if it's just to get them onto pallets in the first place.

Forklift manufacturers provide bale clamps that easily convert forklifts into heavy duty bale-handling machines. Just make sure that bales are secured with straps, wire, or other cordage before lifting them.

3. Box Dumpers

Store loads of paper directly from clients in portable bins. But don't ask your staff to empty them into the shredder by hand.

Emptying a bin manually requires lifting excessive loads, twisting the body, and extending the arms outside of the body's power zone. It's a recipe for a musculoskeletal injury.

Instead, provide your staff with material handling equipment designed to simultaneously lift, tip, and empty heavy bins. Dumpmaster Hydraulic Bin Dumpers from Solus Group provide safe and efficient service with every load. These machines use a unique tipping action that keeps weight centered over the frame for dependable stability.

4. Pallets Trucks

Sometimes, a forklift is a bit of overkill. If you just need to move pallets of paper bales across the dock, a pallet truck will do just fine. Given the weight of a bale of shredded ledger, though, you'll probably want to choose electric pallet trucks to save employees from pulled muscles.

In the recycling industry, more workers lose their lives being crushed by mobile equipment than any other workplace task, reports the magazine Recycling Today. The right material handling devices can dramatically reduce the risk of a workplace tragedy.

Besides, the more efficiently you can transport paper into shredders and bales to the dock, the more successful your document destruction business will be. It's vital to choose the best paper shredding equipment available, but don't forget to invest in ergonomic material handling as well.

References:

McKay, Matt. “How to Start a Document Shredding Business.” SmallBusiness.Chron. Hearst Newspapers, LLC, n.d. Web. 28 Sept. 2016.

McKenna, Lisa. “Shred Intelligence.” RecyclingToday. GIE Media, Inc., 18 Jan. 2013. Web. 28 Sept. 2016.

“The Paper Industry: Forklift attachments do the job.” ForkliftAction. Forkliftaction Media Pty Ltd., 18 Aug. 2005. Web. 28 Sept. 2016.

Workman, Megan. “All in a day’s work.” RecyclingToday. GIE Media, Inc., 5 Nov. 2015. Web. 28 Sept. 2016.