This news article was originally written in Spanish. It has been automatically translated for your convenience. Reasonable efforts have been made to provide an accurate translation, however, no automated translation is perfect nor is it intended to replace a human translator. The original article in Spanish can be viewed at Goods-to-Man = Mercancía al hombre= Mayor eficiencia

Greater efficiency thanks to ergonomic solutions for the logistical centres and of distribution

Goods-to-Man = Commodity to the Greater= man efficiency

Yolanda Núñez, director and marketing, SSI Schaefer. Schaefer International systems S.L. Company member of the Committee of Logistical Equipments of ICIL

09/04/2014

The stations of ergonomic work are the key for a high performance, an optimum quality and some profitable and efficient processes. The stations of ergonomic work, test his cost daily, what supposes that no only reach of average increases of the performance of 20% and more, but they reduce costs to the time that increases the quality.

Increase the efficiency, keep the competitiveness, protect to the employees… treats of aims that pursue so much the operators of warehouses like the companies of setting. But what have to see these aims with the places of work? A lot, since the places of work represent an important factor of adjust to reach these aims. The manual activities reach an especially high efficiency and a good quality in his execution if they are easy to carry out and follow clear and transparent processes. In brief, some surroundings of work ergonómicamente configured has favourable effects for the performance of the employees. However, in this field, the companies still do not take advantage of all the potential of the that have.

Station of picking Pick-to-Tote

Beside the own reflections on the increase of the efficiency is recommended to analyse and improve the situation in the places of work also under demographic points of view. Because of the aging of the society, increases constantly the proportion of employees of the generation 50+ that requires put of work individually adapted because of the decrease of his physical performance. The relative requirements to the solutions of place of work are: they have to be flexible, reduce the load of physical work, preserve the health and be individual. Of the contrary, the places of work that demand movements no natural of the employees or cause bad postures represent a risk on a long-term basis. It is tested that the manual activities that mean a high degree of effort for the employees comport a performance menguante, an increasing propensity to commit errors, a high number of drops by illness and a high fluctuation.

The ergonomic activities to drag and push substitute the operations to elevate and transport that they load the back of considerable form.

To optimise the point of intersection man-machine in the company, SSI Schäfer has developed the concept ergonomics@work! That combines the sequences of the human movements with innovative technologies. After a competent analysis of the whole of processes and the conditions of work configure the labour surroundings of ergonomic form and without risks for the health. At the same time the program provides optimum processes: with a minimum physical load no only increases the productivity in until 20% but it improves also the quality of the processing of orders and reduces the time of execution or the time of cycle of the orders. Neither it is necessary subestimar the positive influence in the motivation of the employees.

The program ergonomics@work is integrated by stations of picking and places of special work. It is necessary to mention, for example, the place of work of reception of commodities, the place of work of returns, the station of picking Pick-to-Tote, the system of picking And-Pick, the place of work of setting pick@work as well as the new place of work of despaletización and paletización manual.

Paletización And despaletización ergonomic

The new places of work of paletización and despaletización manual and multifuncionales developed by SSI Schaefer also have been conceived according to the principle “commodity to the man” (“ware to man”) and fulfil the most demanding requirements regarding ergonomics, hygiene, performance and health of the operarios. The greater ergonomic risks along the chain of value added in the centres of distribution of commodities give especially in the fields of transport, put to disposal, despaletización, manufacturing, movement and picking.

The new places of work reduce noticeably the load of the operarios during the elevation, the movimentación and the transport. The ergonomic activities to drag and push substitute the operations of elevation and transport. A system of communication and intelligent visualisation guide to the operario of intuitive form.

Especially because of the remarkable reduction of the inclinations to in front of the top of the body achieves , during the picking manual in the place of work of paletización, an improvement of the posture in comparison with the picking conventional.