Beverage Delivery » Delivery Trucks

Delivery Trucks

The beverage delivery person unloads various cases of beverages from the delivery truck. Delivery trucks are generally tall, with deep and high cargo bays. The bays are often seven feet high, 40 inches wide and 40 inches deep.

 

Potential Hazard:

  • Employees must perform repeated, extended, and elevated reaches (Fig. 1) to access and lift product out of the truck bays.

Possible Solutions:

  • When accessing bays high off the ground and bays over truck wheels; provide a ladder–like device that can be attached to the bays. The employee can then climb the ladder to pull cases down. The employee can also set cases on the ladder, using it as a platform. Then when the employee stands on the ground he/she can lift the case from the platform.

  • Provide a pullout step (Fig. 2). This platform allows easier access to the packages stored high in the bay (Fig.3), which reduces the stress to the shoulders and back.

  • Provide a portable platform that elevates employees. Suggested dimensions are two feet by seven or eight inches by two feet. The platform can be covered with slip resistant material to control slipping.

  • Whenever possible, use two-person delivery teams. Two-person delivery teams will provide periods of lifting and non-lifting. Employee #1 can unload the truck while employee #2 can roll the hand truck with cases to the vendor. The employees can then rotate tasks every hour.

  • Allow employees who load delivery trucks to place full kegs or heavy containers in the first tier of the lower bays. This decreases both the extended reach by employees unloading the delivery truck and the vertical distance the beverages must fall.

  • Use an articulated arm or other lifting mechanism to lift, lower and position heavy objects. A small portable forklift such as the one shown at the right (Fig. 4) can be used to remove pallets from the delivery truck, move pallets to a convenient location for off loading, and to position the load so it can be handled at about waist height for most lifts.

Fig. 1: Elevated reach.
 
Fig. 2: Pullout step.
Fig. 3: Platform allowing for easier access to the packages.
 
Fig. 4: Employee utilizing a small portable forklift to remove pallets.
Fig. 5: Extended reach to open/close bay doors.

Potential Hazard:

  • The employees use repeated, extended and elevated reaches (Fig. 5) to open and close the large and heavy bay doors. These doors may have to be opened and closed several times with each delivery for security reasons.

Possible Solutions:

  • Whenever possible, use two-person delivery teams. Two-person delivery teams provide load security thus eliminating repeated opening and closing of the bay doors. A two-person delivery team also allows one employee to be positioned inside the bay to hand a load to the second employee standing on the ground. This reduces the vertical distance any one employee lifts a load and controls extended reaches.

  • Use an articulated arm or other lifting mechanism to lower and position heavy objects.

  • Make sure doors are maintained and damaged doors are repaired. A properly functioning bay door should require only a few pounds of force to open.

Potential Hazard:

  • Employees must lift materials from the bay and place them to low location on hand trucks as shown (Fig. 6). Pushing items in the weight range of an empty keg can lead to shoulder and upper arm injuries.

Possible Solutions:

Fig. 6: Bending the torso when unloading product.

  • Educate employees on the basics of body biomechanics and the importance of maintaining the body in an ergonomically neutral position. Generally, the torso should not be bent more than 6 to 10 degrees from vertical. An employee should be able to perform the task with the elbows in close to the torso.

  • Use a small portable forklift such as that shown above (Fig. 4) to reduce the number of times that deep torso bending is needed since larger quantities of material may be able to be transported directly to cooler or store shelves.

  • See Solutions specific to Hand Trucks for more ideas on how to minimize bending the torso.

Fig. 7: High reach for product.Fig. 8: Hand truck ramp.

Potential Hazard:

  • The truck used for delivery requires the employee to reach up and pull beverages down (Fig. 7), or lift the load from high elevations to the ground. It also requires the employees to lift empty containers up into the truck. These activities put considerable stress on the shoulders, elbows and low back.

Possible Solutions:

  • Provide a ramp so that employees can use a hand truck (Fig. 8).

  • Use an articulated arm or other lifting mechanism to lift, lower and position heavy objects. A small portable forklift such as the one shown above (Fig. 4) can be used to remove pallets from the delivery truck, move pallets to a convenient location for off loading, and to position the load so it can be handled at about waist height for most lifts.

  • Use low deck vehicles.