Material handling is necessary for most industrial and production processes, but every product or material costs money. The best way to grow your business is by addressing the costs of processing material and material handling. Here are the best practices for lowering material handling costs regardless of industry.
Reduce Interaction
Material interaction, or touch labor, refers to how many times workers directly deal with materials and the length of time they spend doing so. The more that workers interact with each product, the more it costs to process. Merge steps and create systems that require as little worker interaction as possible.
Prioritize Space Management
Minimizing the space you use when processing or producing an item can greatly decrease material handling costs. The extra free space you gain can then go into remedying other problems, such as worker spacing and extra processing systems.
Automate and Use Conveyors
Another way that companies can reduce material handling costs is with automatic systems that perform the labor instead of workers. Conveyors efficiently carry materials for workers, and adding automation lowers material handling costs by decreasing material interaction.
Protect Materials
One major drain on material costs is the damage your materials might suffer during their processing. Implementing practices that protect materials during processing can save you a lot in damages. Some of these practices also protect workers from dangerous risks, making them well worth the investment.
Communicate With Workers
The last thing you can do to really lower material handling costs is listen to your workers. Workers often have the best ideas on the major and minor problems you might not notice. Having open communication with workers lets them tell you about material handling problems and can increase safety and efficiency across the board.
These are the best practices for lowering material handling costs that you can bring into your work. Although there are other things you can do, properly enforcing these practices will improve your costs and save you a lot of money.