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The pandemic brought personal protective equipment (PPE) into national focus, but employers in warehousing, logistics and other industries have long understood the importance of proper PPE outfitting. Where protective equipment is necessary, OSHA generally requires employers to provide it — and most employers understand that PPE is well worth the investment, since safety is always a crucial priority.

The warehousing and storage industry employed well over a million people in 2019. More than 300,000 of those employees were manual material handlers, the largest occupation of any in the sector. (By contrast, there were only 12,500 managers and fewer than 200,000 industrial truck operators.) These statistics illustrate the central role manual material handling continues to occupy in our global logistics systems.

Bulk waste management requires bulk material handling equipment. If your facility handles post-use materials on a large scale, you need mechanical help to safely transport, lift, and empty bins. This waste-handling equipment may include any or all of the following:

To keep lift trucks running, businesses need to keep batteries in excellent condition. Batteries, after all, are the single most expensive forklift component — and the single element most responsible for the unit’s operation. Poor maintenance can affect the lift truck’s functionality, reducing operating times and increasing the number of change-outs.

Warehouse picking carts are essential to any fulfillment operation. They allow pickers to fill many orders per trip, unlocking efficient strategies such as batch picking and zone picking. Even better, they create a safer workplace. Carrying heavy loads and repeated bending and reaching raise the risk of musculoskeletal disorders, the world’s leading cause of disability. Carts reduce the hazard by bearing loads and positioning shelves at accessible heights. But not all carts are equally ergonomic. In fact, poor equipment can reduce efficiency and increase the risk of injury, as workers must exert more force to operate a faulty cart.

Don’t underestimate the importance of high-quality refuse containers (or trash cans, for our American customers). In commercial settings, bins can create a lasting impression on customers; in industrial settings, refuse containers keep the worksite organized and efficient. Durable materials and ergonomic features make a difference, both to the personnel working with the containers and to the operation’s bottom line.

Utility trench covers serve a crucial function, protecting wire, cable, gas lines, and other materials from environmental damage. However, as anyone who works with trench covers knows, they’re not always easy to move — concrete and dirt can weigh down the lids, creating a temporary seal that requires quite a bit of manpower to break. The lids themselves can also be heavy; while most trench covers weigh less than 100 pounds, some can weigh upwards of 200.

In industrial and commercial settings, light fixture installation is fairly straightforward work — which is why efficiency and precision are so important. A successful job will minimize onsite waste, allowing electricians to focus on the job at hand.

Knowing when, where, and how to properly utilize personal protective equipment (PPE) can help save lives and minimize injuries. It also helps employers maintain compliance with various laws and regulations such as OSHA 1910.132, which states:

When handling spills in the workplace, it’s important to use the correct type of product for clean-up. To prepare for an emergency — and to mitigate the potential hazards posed by any type of spill — personnel should understand the key differences between spill clean-up products.