Lift Truck Tips: Improving operator ergonomics

Technology has fueled the evolution of operator comfort, but the perfect fit remains elusive.

 

Any automobile driver could expect to be sore and stiff at the end of an eight-hour road trip. Operators of modern lift trucks and used forklifts enjoy an increasing number of the same features they find in their cars, but improving comfort remains a critical challenge for many forklift manufacturers and used forklifts dealers.

According to David McNeill, product manager of warehouse products for NAACO Materials Handling Group, “The biggest focus is on how to make an operator as productive in the last hour as he or she is in the first.”

Jeff Bowles, product line manager for Mitsubishi Caterpillar Forklift America, says ergonomic refinements can be divided into the seen and the unseen. Unseen features include improved suspension and replacement of manual hydraulic operations with electric systems. The visible features are so varied that they make cabins virtually unrecognizable from designs even a decade earlier.

Fingertip controls, adjustable contoured armrests, mast-mounted cameras to improve visibility, telescopic adjustable steering columns with programmable tilt memory—each advance reduces operator fatigue while increasing productivity. But a full shift in forklifts and used forklifts remains a challenging prospect, and the lower back remains a perennial culprit in reports of lift truck operator discomfort.
Ergonomics is a subset of safety, says McNeill. Because all forklift and used forklifts operators are taught to carry loads in reverse when possible for optimal visibility, this means that as much as 50% of the time spent on the forklift could be spent in a twisted position, he says. Manufacturers are developing seats that swivel or are mounted at a slight angle, which will complement handles to ease the strain of looking backwards.

Bowles adds that many more lift truck models are coming equipped with electric power steering, which greatly reduces operator fatigue, particularly in high-throughput areas. The expansion of automated technology on forklifts and used forklifts even allows a truck to navigate between chosen pallet positions at the push of a button, without any further operator input.

From cup holders to cruise control, more and more comforts of the family car are making their way to the warehouse floor. And, McNeill says things will only get better for the forklift and used forklift operator.

“We’re all working toward the same goal, but there really is no end,” he says. “Operator comfort can always be improved.”

LINK: http://www.mmh.com/view/lift_truck_tips_improving_operator_ergonomics/forklifts

About Continental Lift Truck & Used Forklifts
Continental Lift Truck, located in Minneapolis, MN, is one of the largest wholesalers of Used Forklifts in the World. Established in 1984, the founder of the company, Douglas Tamasi, has been in the forklift industry since 1969.

Our huge inventory includes: Cushion Tire Used Forklifts, Pneumatic Tire Used Forklifts, Rough Terrain Used Forklifts, Three Wheel Electric Used Forklifts, Sit Down Rider Electric Used Forklifts, Reach Trucks Used Forklifts and more used forklifts.