Between 35,000 and 62,000 minor and fatal injuries happen every year due to forklift-related accidents. Looking at these numbers, the effort to increase warehouse safety is vital, and we believe that Holland Vision Systems (HVS) forklift cameras will be a major part of the solution. About 80% of HVS customers say they use their cameras strictly for their safety benefits and the majority of them come back to buy more after seeing the positive effects. Some companies even consider the cameras a “required piece of safety equipment” and will temporarily take a truck out of service if its camera is down.
Material handling cameras have grown dramatically in popularity within the last five years. Traditionally, the initial installations of cameras in material handling applications were on stand-up deep-reach forklifts as without a fork-mounted camera, operators cannot see their forks, the pallet, or the racking when handling the second row of pallets. But recently, we’ve seen a significant spike in demand for cameras to be put on counterbalance trucks. HVS attributes this to many reasons, including the emphasis on following safety standards, awareness of operators’ ergonomic issues, the effects of high employee turnover, recording to reduce property damage and for liability purposes, and overall advancements in wireless and video technology.
“As our forklifts can work up to 45’, we suggest HVS systems as a safety attachment when our customers work at elevated heights. They give visibility in operations where the operators can’t see unassisted,” says dealer Javier Garcia, from Narrow Aisle Inc.
Dealer Trey Imbierowicz says, “The carriage-mounted cameras give a better view of the forks’ positioning when they are raised high in the air. This allows the operator to have better visibility in the air. I’ve had a customer tip a forklift because the operator hit the top rack thinking their forks were raised high enough and caused the lift to tip backward. This was a standup counterbalanced lift and would have been avoided if they had your camera system.”
Since May of 2018, the Federal Government has required all new road vehicles to have backup cameras and video displays to compensate for limited visibility in reverse, and classified the video systems as lifesaving technology, similar to airbags and seatbelts. Since a big part of a forklift operator’s day is spent driving a forklift in reverse and work in arguably more dangerous environments, HVS suggests that backup cameras on forklifts should be the standard, too. Added visibility will decrease accidents, increase operational efficiency, and reduce product damage. In addition, forklift operators must twist their body to look behind them, which can cause discomfort daily and major health issues down the road. In a recent study, researchers found that 49% of operators had severe neck pain due to work-related movement, and 63% had pain in their shoulders. Give your operators a break and cut downtime due to injury by displaying hard-to-see areas on an LCD monitor from HVS.
With staffing shortages, new employees, expedited training, and lack of experience, some problems are inevitable. However, managers have found forklift cameras and recording systems to be a solution to safety concerns and the excessive warehouse and product damage caused by the inexperienced operators. Not only will a monitor help with visibility and operational efficiency in real time, but by recording video of your senior drivers in your operations, you’ll have an ideal training tool to show new employees. Leading by example – not just a manual. The typical forklift training video found online won’t address the unique needs of your warehouse, operations, and equipment, but your own video footage will. Video recordings are also valuable for holding operators accountable as they drive more responsibly when they know their actions are being recorded. This leads to a decrease in damages and negligent driving accidents from all your operators, not just your new ones.
Our compact, weatherproof video recorders have solid-state hard drives for longer storage and Wi-Fi access for live monitoring, allowing managers to act quickly in an emergency. The recording system’s features also help with employee training, accident records, monitoring operations, operator accountability, and much more.
Jimmy McCay from Lift One says his customers use HVS cameras for reducing product damage and keeping records of safety-related accidents and says they love their cameras because they “provide real-time feedback on safety violations with a clear path to better processes. They also offer open discussion with staff for feedback and review of solutions to better operations.”
HVS’ 10,000-part number portfolio shows we are constantly pushing to utilize the newest technologies to produce higher-performing products at a lower cost. We’ve recently been able to offer a drastic upgrade in camera resolution, with mega pixel quality and a smoother appearance. After installation, we’ve heard feedback from techs saying, “This is the clearest forklift display we’ve seen!” The clearer the image, the better the view and the safer the operations.
One of our newest innovations, The Integra, contains a camera, white LED lights, and optional green-line laser to help the operator position his forks swiftly and accurately. The LED light illuminates the racking, the laser allows the operator to align his forks into the pallet pocket with or without using the monitor, and the monitor shows his forks from an ideal perspective at any height. The Integra is an easy-to-install wireless camera system for counterbalance forklifts and proves to have an ROI of three months, depending on the application.
What sets HVS apart is our ability to tailor camera systems for our customers. There is a huge variety of factors to take into consideration in finding the perfect solution including the make and model of you truck, your application, operating environment, attachments, and more. Our custom systems are most popular with customers who have unusual safety hazards whether it is operating temperature, very narrow aisles, unique attachments, or uncommon material handling operations. They want to invest in the right system that will last over the long haul from a company that provides guaranteed customer service.
Our customizable camera options include (but are not limited to) :
With over 25 years in business, HVS places a high value on our reputation for being an innovative, reliable supplier whose products deliver real benefits. We work hard to meet customer priorities and provide responsive, friendly customer service. We have fostered long-term relationships with several forklift manufacturers, forklift attachment designers, many Fortune 500 companies in a variety of industries, and other industrial processing machinery. Our customers experience fewer safety incidents, reduced product damage, and increased productivity in their material handling operations. We look forward to working with the reader and providing the right solution to your needs as well.
Visit www.hollandvisionsystems.com or send an email for more information. Request a quote by visiting our site, calling us 1(616)494-9974, or emailing us.
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(1) Forklift Related Injuries (2) Vehicle Backup Cameras (3) Neck and Shoulder Pain Research
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