TeleScope - JCB

More documents

Recommendations

Info

12225 Telescope Mag May08_8pt:Layout 1 1/8/08 09:55 Page 4 JCB Teletruk How Teletruk has changed life at NYK Logistics A central position and quality highway connections make Tamworth UK an attractive inducement for leading Third-Party Logistics specialists to locate their Regional Distribution Centres here. One of these is global giant NYK Logistics which has two sites. Each week NYK’s Relay Park site is journey’s end for between 50 and 100 containers and a similar number of rigid vehicles and curtainsiders from Europe and other parts of the world. There are three LPG powered Teletruks here. Project Manager Lester Earp: “When we were first shown the Teletruk as an option for the mechanical handling on site there were one or two raised eyebrows - it was something new and change is always difficult within a large business - but once we'd had one on trial through Gunn JCB the lads on the shop floor loved them. They would rather use them than anything else. “Straight away the major impact we found was the time saving when loading and unloading vehicles. Because of the boom arm we can load from one side of the vehicle, so we only open one curtain. There's less travel around vehicles and so it’s obviously much safer. Health and Safety is one of our major concerns and a major bonus with Teletruks. Obviously we try to keep pedestrians and traffic to a minimum in the loading areas, but there are times when you do need to have pedestrians out there and Teletruks minimise the risk - I wouldn’t say they eliminate it - but certainly minimise risk. As well as single side loading which reduces risk the better forwards visibility on the Teletruk – without the mast on a conventional forklift – makes a big impact because the guys have good all round visibility. One of the other benefits we’ve found is the Teletruk is fitted as standard with a load indicator which is a very simple visual aid, just green and red lights going up in a scale so the operators know when they’re getting close to the maximum. We’ve found it very useful – particularly as it is directly in the eyeline. It’s fitted as standard so there’s no additional on-cost for our company. One of the other benefits we’ve found is in accessing pyramid-stacked goods – that’s where goods aren’t stacked directly on top of one another both in containers and out in yard storage areas. We reach over freight to pick parts behind rather than down-stacking which saves an inordinate amount of time. It’s also very good for recovery of freight that has moved or slipped. Instead of having to down-stack everything around it or access from the side we can go over the top. The increased tilt of the forks means we can remain level when we do that – so we can recover pallets more easily and quickly, and more safely. Summary The boom that increased safety factors, saved time, and reduced the area reserved for loading by two-thirds It’s difficult to say what the major benefit of the Teletruk is; there’s the time savings in loading and recovery of pallets, in accessing goods, and the safety aspects which are obviously a big concern across the industry. All these things contribute to what is a very effective piece of kit. Future The Teletruk has made a real impact on how we conduct our business on this site. On this site, particularly with the limited space we have, we’ve been able to entirely eliminate the need for fork extensions which I’m not particularly a fan of anyway, and also reduce our area of reserve for loading by up to two-thirds with the use of the boom and the single side loading. I think in this particular environment NYK Logistics wouldn’t even consider going back to conventional counterbalanced trucks.” Quote: “I think for similar areas of the logistics industry the Teletruk – although it’s a new piece of kit and people are a little bit nervous about using new kit – in the future it will become a standard piece of equipment. The benefits far outweigh the additional cost” Lester Earp, Project Manager, NYK Logistics ( UK ) Ltd, Relay Park, Tamworth UK
12225 Telescope Mag May08_8pt:Layout 1 1/8/08 09:55 Page 5 Visibility and Safety A lorry-mounted container of imported goods backed to a designated delivery access at an NYK Logistics warehouse in Tamworth UK, is off-loaded by an LPGpowered Teletruk. With no mast in front, the operator has unrivalled forwards visibility inside the dark container. What price forwards visibility ? Statistics can only record lift truck accidents, not near misses. But across the world of materials handling a sweeping change in attitudes has begun. “It’s impossible to say how many lives have been saved since Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA) began using Teletruks in 2001, but GPHA are convinced there certainly have been quite a number in Ghana’s Ports.” Seth Martey, Former Operations Manager,GPHA,Tema/Takoradi Ports “The accepted view now is that accidents can be designed out of the workplace, such as separating pedestrians from vehicles.” Chris MacRae, health and safety spokesman at the UK Freight Transport Association, commenting in a recent report entitled ‘Life and death in Logistics’ “There are several risks associated with the use of lift trucks in confined areas, especially if pedestrians are sharing the same space” Ian Smith, transport advisor at the UK Freight Transport Association’s Member Advice Centre “You can’t fix a price on improved safety in the workplace, but all our information convinces us that safety has moved to the very top of virtually every site management’s agenda.” “Everything we’ve been hearing over the past two years confirms our belief that a Teletruk operator’s clear view ahead is a key ingredient in improving safety.” Chris Nowell, General Manager, JCB Industrial “We don't have to deal with the blind spots at the end of the vehicle, with Teletruks we're not coming round the side of the vehicle on a blind corner where potentially you could hit a pedestrian” Lester Earp – Project Manager, NYK Logistics ( UK ) Ltd This Teletruk entering a container in a Ghana port shows what a good view ahead is presented to the operator. This container with hinged side doors demonstrates just how good forwards visibility is for the operator. And if there are manual workers inside the container a Teletruk operator will see them.
Page 1 and 2: 12225 Telescope Mag May08_8pt:Layou
Page 3: 12225 Telescope Mag May08_8pt:Layou

TeleScope - JCB

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?