In a recent article in MHI Solutions, “Topple Protection and New Standards Among the Key Developments for Protective Guarding Field,” members of the Protective Guarding Manufacturers Association (ProGMA) discussed an increased commitment to safety in warehousing and distribution centers. The article notes that the protective guarding industry has been busier than ever in recent years to meet greater demands for its solutions.

“I think we’ve seen a general increase in concern for safety,” said Kenneth Parrott, product manager for ProGMA member Impact Recovery. Parrott also serves as chair of ProGMA. “I think that companies have come to the realization that not only do they want to protect their employees for the right reasons, but also how costly it is when there is an accident. So, just in general, there’s been a push to improve their safety and their guarding.”

Kyle Nobile, engineering director for ProGMA member Integrated Warehouse Solutions and vice chair of ProGMA, agreed. He said protective guarding equipment is not meant to be the primary safety tool in a warehouse but rather a vital tool when something goes awry. As a comparison, Nobile noted, “Highways have guardrails running down the side of them, but you don’t drive your car scraping against that guardrail. If you need that guardrail, though, you’re sure happy it’s there.”

“In a perfect world, our product wouldn’t be needed and would never, ever be hit,” Nobile said. “Protective guarding isn’t really meant to be the primary means of preventing any kind of accident, but just the final failsafe if the rest of the system fails.”

Increased Interest in Topple Protection Solutions

The ever-growing demands on the supply chain have led to new protective guarding challenges in warehouses. For instance, Parrott said topple protection is attracting growing interest. Topple protection prevents stacks of pallets or boxes from tipping over. This often includes preventing a stack’s support structure at ground level from being struck and disturbed.

Topple protection has grown in importance as warehouses stack items higher and higher to creatively fill up their footprint. “Warehouses seem to currently be building up instead of out,” Nobile said.

A barrier in topple protection should stop a product from falling initially in the event of a toppling. It should also be able to hold it aloft for an extended duration. This allows someone to fix the problem before the product falls.

Protective Guarding for Pallet Rack Prevents Contact in Narrow Aisles

In addition to increased vertical storage, Parrott and Nobile said they are seeing more pallet racking pushed closer and closer together. That increases the risk of team members making unintended contact with storage areas.

“If you can’t build up and you can’t increase your footprint, you just start sliding everything tighter together,” Nobile said. “They’re getting their pallet racking closer. You’ve still got to have order pickers or forklifts running up and down the aisle. Yet, you don’t have space for them to avoid the structural supports anymore. So now you need physical barriers. These ensure that if they’re in a tight aisle, they’re not going to knock the entire pallet rack over whenever they’re trying to get product from it.”

Standards for Protective Guarding Ensure Uniform Manufacturing

As part of its safety efforts, ProGMA is developing standards focused on the testing of products. The standards ensure that end users can more reliably get an apples-to-apples comparison of various products. They also encourage manufacturers in the industry to better align with each other.

“There are many different ways you can test a product, and so any particular manufacturer could test to their own benefit, and kind of throw out a number or a test that makes theirs look in its best light,” Parrott said. “By having a uniform standard for testing, you take that issue away, and you force everybody to test the same way. Without standards, it can be kind of the Wild West with how particular safety products are rated.”

Nobile said standards will benefit customers.

“It helps build customer confidence in whatever product they’re buying and not having to rely on a company saying, ‘Oh yeah, it’ll work,’” Nobile said. “Instead, they’ll have the industry standard saying, ‘Yes, it’ll work, because testing shows that it’ll work.’ It’s about building that customer confidence and making sure that the product is actually going to do what it says. [It also confirms] that it is safe for use in the space the customer has in mind.”

ProGMA Resources Help Operations Find the Protection They Need

ProGMA also hopes to help end users find the right product for their unique circumstances.

“We’ve always tried to highlight our products. What we’re going to work toward next is more highlighting the safety issue or problem, and then discuss the best ways to protect against it,” Parrott said. “If the issue is somebody needs to protect a pedestrian, or they need to protect somebody on an elevated platform, then we can look at what products are available. [We can also share] the successes in the industry to properly solve that issue. We’re going to be working on a solutions tool to do that for the people who come to ProGMA looking for that expertise.”

Learn More About ProGMA

ProGMA members are manufacturers of protective guarding products designed to protect personnel, equipment, and inventory in industrial facilities. The organization offers a variety of resources and educational information about safety solutions on its website: mhi.org/progma.