Traditionally, workstations that are used in the manufacturing industry consist of structures that are built into the work environment. As an employee working at a manufacturing plant, you may have found yourself using workstations that were initially designed to mesh with a workflow that has long since evolved into something different. This can lead to you being required to assume unnatural postures while performing your job, as a result of the changes that have occurred around your work area. Over time, these repetitive, awkward motions can cause injury. You may have also noticed that the older design of the workstation does not lend itself well to the new task at hand in terms of the station’s height or organization. This can lead to extra stress on your body as you are forced to reach and lean during the course of your shift.
Portable workstations can alleviate many of these ergonomic issues. A mobile workstation is one which can be moved to any area of the production floor where it is required, which streamlines operations and eliminates steps from the work flow. Not only that, but these portable workstations are completely configurable to match not only the task being performed, but also the worker who is performing it. To begin with, the table top fitted onto the workstation can be rotated and tilted in order to provide better access to the materials and tools being used. It is also height-adjustable, meaning that you can set it so that it is in a comfortable position no matter what your height may be. These workstations can often be linked together to form larger units in order to better coordinate with other team members, or to directly link with conveyors on an assembly line.
Since the mobile workstations are completely adjustable, even when bearing a full load of materials and tools, you can adjust the positioning of your workstation throughout the course of a shift. This allows you to add variance to the repetitive tasks that you perform, ensuring that you do not exactly repeat the same motions over and over. This can help significantly reduce musculoskeletal injuries from repetitive stress on the arms, shoulders, wrists and hands. Another advantage of using a mobile workstation is that the station can be brought into the cargo area and loaded by machinery. Since the station remains mobile even under load, there is no need for you to have to do any additional lifting at a later time in order to keep your cart fully stocked with the necessary materials to do their job.
Mobile carts are not only an excellent solution for improving your ergonomic situation on the factory floor, but they also provide a method of increasing the efficiency of the entire process. Being able to reconfigure the arrangement of the work environment to match the work flow of each task will help keep you in good health and also help your company to achieve a higher level of productivity without adding any extra steps or strain.
Source: Brown E, 2003. Workstations for Flexible Manufacturing Provide Ergonomic Benefits.
