Read this article or go straight to this white paper analyzing full bed tool boxes for pickup trucks here:
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD DECKED SAFETY REPORT:
Fit the job to the worker not the other way around. As a company we are as concerned with the work truck safety as the people who work around pickup trucks are. It's our job to protect the worker and with our full bed truck toolbox, we reduce or even eliminate the need to crawl into the back of the truck to retrieve items. With two full bed-length, pull out drawers everything is right at the worker's fingertips. Unlike in other solutions, items which are normally stored either in a crossover toolboxes or in tubs and boxes in the bed of the truck, require the worker to perform a risky task to access their gear. One has to either stand on the tire of the truck, perch on the corner of the bumper or just straight up crawl into the bed to get their items. These behaviors all come at a certain risk of injury either traumatic or chronic (from over use). 3rd party expert, Andrew S. Merriweather, PhD, professor and department director of the Ergonomics and Safety program at the University of Utah, compared full bed roll out drawer toolboxes to other solutions. His findings were conclusive and quite transparent.
"In this study, the DECKED drawer system increased safe access to truck bed storage space by 44%, reducing the risk of fall from the vehicle by 16.7%. In addition to safer access, the DECKED drawer system reduced the ergonomic risk of many common tasks performed in and around a work vehicle. Some tasks performed with the DECKED drawer system reduced back compressive forces (BCF) to below the action limit recommended by NIOSH and increased the population strength capability from 28% to 99%.
We observed a reduction in excessive reaching and trunk flexion required to access the storage spaced that is otherwise out of reach or difficult from the back of the tailgate and sides of the vehicle. These differences are bio mechanically significant and could dramatically reduced the risks leading to acute and chronic injuries. In addition to these benefits, the overall efficiency of many of the observed tasks increased because the of improved access to storage space and elimination of hazardous movements such as jumping down from the elevated surface of the vehicle."
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD DECKED SAFETY REPORT:
ERGONOMIC WHITE PAPER SUPPORTS DECKED
Prepared for DECKED by: Mary Smith, (B.S.E., M.S.E. IOE) independent human factors expert, Detroit, MI
To read the entire DECKED ERGONOMICS paper CLICK HERE
Working out of trucks and vans invites the gamut of poor ergonomic situations as well as time wasted crawling into vehicles or digging around in cross-over toolboxes to access needed items. Over time these situations can lead to over-use injuries and missed time at work.
Having an ergonomically favorable work environment saves time and money and leads to healthier, more productive workers. DECKED reduces trips in and out of vehicles putting essential items in the "power zone" between the waist and shoulders.
Everybody knows the effort and hassle of crawling in and out of their truck or van to get that tool or box of hardware. We have all tried to find a way to dig into the cross-over toolbox at the head of the truck bed. Every awkward move, uncomfortable lift, or trip in and out of the vehicle wears on our bodies and wastes time. To put this in perspective we hired Mary Smith, an independent human factors expert out of Detroit, to show how and where DECKED serves as an advantage to the status quo of work truck and cargo van environments.
Workplace musculoskeletal injuries are the most common types of injuries in the construction industry, responsible for more than 1/3 of all lost workday injuries and about half of all compensation claims. The leading cause of workplace injury is over-exertion resulting from lifting, pushing, pulling, holding, carrying or throwing. According to Liberty Mutual (2014), these workplace injuries account for over $15 billion annually in direct costs to employers.
Jobs that involve working from the bed of a pickup truck or cargo van expose the worker to awkward movements to access items in the bed, toolboxes or other storage containers located in trucks and vans.
Creating a workplace environment with good ergonomics reduces these injuries, saves money and leads to more productive workers.
Reaching into toolboxes, crawling into the bed of vehicles, straining to reach items out of the bed of the truck are all examples of poor ergonomic conditions which ultimately lead to strain and the potential for injury.
A simple solution to making tools, hardware and other items more easily accessible can save time and money as well as prevent avoidable workplace injuries.
