Material Handling Engineering
Gains in Safety, Ergonomics, and Productivity at an E-commerce Distribution Center.
Client / Segment
E-commerce operation with 127 Distribution Centers and more than 70,000 employees.
Challenge
Risk of accidents, unintended cart movement, and high physical effort required from operators.
Solution
Replacement of conventional swivel casters with brakes by rigid casters with a braking system, along with the installation of a protective metal bumper.
Key Result
Complete elimination of accidents and zero corrective maintenance since implementation.
Intralogistics for Material Handling
The partnership between Forma Art and Schioppa resulted in the development of an innovative solution for cart handling in one of the country’s largest e-commerce operations — implemented across a logistics network of 127 Distribution Centers and impacting more than 70,000 employees.
The Objective
Eliminate operational risks, improve operators’ ergonomic conditions, and increase the productivity of logistics processes. Considering the scale of the operation, any improvement achieved had the potential to generate significant results at scale — directly enhancing the efficiency, safety, and quality of daily operations.
PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION
01
Frequent risk of accidents involving operators’ feet and ankles during manual cart movement.
02
Unintended movement in unloading areas, requiring employees to control the carts while sorting packages.
03
Direct impact on operational productivity and safety.
04
High physical effort required to move the carts throughout the operation.
SOLUTION AND APPLICATION
A Customized Solution, Developed Together
The technical teams from Forma Art and Schioppa worked together to develop improvements tailored specifically to the operation.
01 · CASTERS
Rigid Casters with Braking System
We replaced conventional swivel casters with brakes with rigid casters equipped with a braking system, significantly reducing the effort required to move the carts. Operators were able to work with greater comfort, less physical strain, and improved ergonomic conditions.
02 · SAFETY
Protective Metal Bumper
The installation of a metal bumper eliminated accidents caused by carts coming into contact with employees’ feet and ankles. Following implementation, incidents associated with this type of risk were completely eliminated — representing a significant improvement in safety indicators.
03 · STABILITY
Strategic Caster Repositioning
Developed jointly by the teams, the new configuration enabled the use of rigid casters with a pedal-operated braking system, ensuring complete stability during loading and unloading operations.
KEY ACHIEVEMENTS
Results That Scale
01
Increased Operational Productivity
02
Reduction in Unnecessary Movements
03
Greater Efficiency in Package Sorting and Handling
04
