McCullough Industries – Kenton, OH: Lance Harris and James Melvin

At McCullough, forklifts are regularly used as worktables at the press brake, holding material until it’s ready to move to a different location. This meant the division needed to have many forklifts available to use as worktables and to transport material. Using forklifts as worktables potentially created safety hazards because the forklifts weren’t intended to be used in that way.

Lance Harris, Safety Specialist, and James Melvin, Machine Operator, determined hydraulic lift tables are a more practical way to hold material at the press brake while it’s in-process. Tables were purchased for each press brake and installed by an outside electrical vendor. The tables removed the ergonomic safety concerns because they are adjustable with the push of a button on a controller, rather than leaving the make-shift table from the forklift at a height that required an employee to reach or bend.

After installation of the tables, forklifts are only in the press brake area to transport material. This reduced the risks associated with forklift traffic in that area and has reduced expenses related to maintaining many forklifts. Estimated savings per forklift is over $10,000 annually.

Lesson Learned:

Even though the way you’ve always done a job has worked okay, entertaining ideas to help you or your coworkers work safer and smarter could help you reduce risks, increase productivity and save some money, too.