On April 25th, a highly expected decision was made regarding the lumber industry. Donald Trump imposed a 3-24% countervailing duty (CVD) on Canadian lumber entering the US. While the decision will raise the price of lumber for US buyers, the tariff is not as high as originally expected, which was up to 40%. In anticipation… Read more
Manufacturing has experienced some good fortune in recent years. Of course, along with a thriving industry come price fluctuations – ones that both benefit and hinder industry professionals. For example, consumer spending increased the demand for material handling equipment, thereby driving up their prices. You’ve probably noticed this over the last few years, especially if… Read more
Modern Materials Handling (MMH) recently discussed the results of Peerless Research Group’s 2017 Warehouse/DC Equipment Survey. The results revealed that the industry is spending and planning to spend on solutions that improve flexibility and efficiency. This was especially true for companies that felt stress from: faster cycle times, smaller, more frequent orders, and labor pressures…. Read more
For most regions, at least one cold snap has hit by now, and we know: it’s only going to get worse. As we look winter down the barrel, warehouse workers need to ensure they’re prepared to work safely in these conditions. Even indoors, warehouses get dangerously cold in the winter, and it’s just as important… Read more
Meet Joe. He’s a respectable, hard-working guy who does his job well. Here you see one of the many things he does every day – push a cart filled with units to get from one place to another. Having a cart makes his job easier, right? He can move more units at a time, and… Read more
Are you pulling workers from their jobs to assist with pushing heavy loads throughout production? Spare the time and money with a smart solution. Manufacturers see this issue all the time. Parts or product need to be repeatedly moved from one area to another and the load is so heavy that it requires several people… Read more
The manufacturing industry saw this problem coming long ago. We knew we would hit a time when we had plenty of jobs and few people to fill them. The Baby Boomers are nearing retirement, and we don’t have enough skilled applicants to replace them. The manufacturing workforce is getting older, and if we don’t adjust… Read more
It seems like a great idea. A batter powered, electrically operated “Smart cart” solves two relevant problems in manufacturing and warehousing. 1) It reduces the need for a forklift, thereby increasing safety and sparing costs. 2) It also eliminates a lot of manual pushing and pulling. This keeps people working longer with less fatigue and… Read more
Since the wheel was invented carts were used to move product. Over the years materials for carts have changed and the manufacturing methods have improved. Some carts are built out of stainless steel for the food industry and others are used for moving manufactured product in a production facility. The one thing that all carts… Read more