An Ergonomic Strategy for Moving Bottom Heavy Loads
Posted by Carl Nattrass on Fri, Jul 09, 2010
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Moving bottom heavy loads like concrete grinders, wood or pellet stoves, electric motors or batteries takes special care. When using a PowerMate® stair climber the operator uses the wheels as the pivot point when extending or retracting the toe plate. If all the weight is at one end, it makes it harder for the operator to pivot the load. PowerMate® has come up with two neat solutions for this problem, one very simple, other more high-tech. Both work equally well.
The simple solution involves the addition of a ‘load elevator accessory’ to your PowerMate® kit. The Load elevator is simply a steel frame that attaches to your PowerMate® and allows the operator to position the load closer to the centre of gravity or pivot point of the machine. This clever accessory design makes it easier for the operator to pivot the load over the wheels making the job of stair climbing much easier. The load is still fixed however, and while the load is much closer to the centre of gravity then without the load elevator accessory, it is not often exactly on centre.
This brings us to our second solution, the LE-1 stair climbing hand truck. The LE-1 has a dual drive screw design that allows the operator to dynamically position the load anywhere along the frame. This makes the job of finding that perfect balance point simply a matter of pushing a button. The LE-1 is ideal for contractors that regularly move bottom heavy loads like stoves, grinding machines or electric motors. Learn more about the LE-1 or have one of our Solution Specialists call you at your convenience.