Top 5 Ways to Boost Loading Dock Efficiency

Loading docks are a bottleneck. Critical to most facilities, they're where raw materials and supplies arrive and fulfilled orders depart. Speed bumps there drag down your whole operation. So, it's absolutely vital that your loading docks operate at maximum efficiency. Read on to learn 5 ways to optimize your dock.

1. Make It Easy

Loading dock optimization involves more than just your team. It also includes the drivers who make deliveries to your facility. For your operation to eliminate wasted time, drivers need tools to get in and out quickly and safely. Investing in loading dock equipment makes deliveries far more efficient:

• Traffic Lights. Traffic lights are one of the fastest and easiest ways to improve communication between drivers and your loading dock team. Green lights tell drivers when it's safe to approach or exit a dock, while red lights tell them that loading and unloading are still in progress. This communication keeps the loading dock running smoothly while also improving safety by reducing the chances of premature separation.
• Wheel Guides. Misalignment between a trailer and the loading dock poses a severe safety risk. So when these gaps occur, the trailer must reposition. This takes time and brings your loading dock to a standstill until it's fixed. Wheel guides help eliminate this by guiding the trailer into the proper docked position.
• Loading Dock Bumpers. The fastest way to put your loading dock out of commission is a collision. Collisions have the potential to damage doors and other safety equipment. Whenever they happen, the dock must shut down until the door and loading dock equipment are declared safe. Dock bumpers prevent this by creating a physical barrier between the dock and the trailer. Since they are non-damaging, they also make it easier for drivers to know when their trailer has connected with the dock.
• Mirrors. Big vehicles like delivery trucks and trailers create many blind spots for their drivers. These are manageable on the open road, but drivers must move with greater precision at the loading dock. Mirrors help eliminate blind spots, allowing drivers to enter and exit loading docks easily.

2. Dock Leveler

As mentioned above, gaps between loading docks and trailers pose a serious hazard to workers, especially forklift operators. However, some factors make gaps inevitable. Loading dock bumpers create a natural gap between the trailer and the dock. Likewise, some trailers sit lower or higher than the dock floor. Cases like these call for a dock leveler. Dock levelers are hydraulic loading dock ramps built into the floor of your loading dock. The leveler extends into the trailer when the dock is in use, creating a seamless forklift ramp between the trailer bed and the loading dock floor. This ensures trailers are forklift accessible, speeding up loading and unloading.

3. Culture of Safety

Accidents are the bane of any productivity-minded loading dock. According to OSHA, 25% of all warehouse accidents occur at the loading dock, and for every accident, there are 600 near-misses. Yet OSHA also states that 70% of accidents are preventable through improved vigilance. You can protect your facility from dangerous loading dock accidents by nurturing a culture of safety. There are many ways to go about developing a culture of safety, but here are a few common factors:

• Training. Safety starts with a robust training program. Training ensures your staff knows how to work the loading dock safely, what hazards to look for, and what to do when they spot an issue.
• Cleanliness. A loading dock's constant in-and-out traffic makes it especially susceptible to clutter, but keeping a tidy dock helps avoid slips, trips, and falls.
• Trailer Locks. Most accidents I see in the field are because a facility doesn't have trailer locks. Invest in these safety locks to prevent incidents. 
• Dock Gates. Falls are the biggest danger on a loading dock. Help prevent falls by installing dock gates and training your staff on when and how to use them.
• Open Communication. Every team member should be able to raise issues and concerns about safety without fear of retaliation. Reward members of your team who speak up about safety.
• Leadership Support. Your organization’s leadership should show their support by making it clear that safety is the priority, even over productivity.

4. Portable Conveyors

There are many metrics for productivity, but at the loading dock, efficiency usually boils down to speed. The faster your team can load or unload a trailer, the more productive they'll be. Forklifts are a massive help for palletized products, but for cartons, boxes, and smaller parcels, workers have to unpack by hand. Portable conveyor systems like the DeStuff-It and ReStuff-It system speed up the loading and unloading process by automating product movement between the workers in the trailer and the dock team. These systems are so effective that they can reduce labor costs by 50% and unload trailers twice as fast.

5. Maintenance

For your loading dock to work, it has to be in working order. That may sound like a truism, but the bottom line is that when your loading dock equipment or doors break down, that entire bay becomes inoperable. Even a single tagged-out loading dock dramatically reduces your productivity. For example, if you have three loading docks and one goes down, your productivity drops by 33%.

That makes maintenance crucial. Planned preventative maintenance keeps your loading dock equipment operating to the manufacturer’s specifications. A certified service technician ensures all the parts are functioning and replaces parts that are approaching the end of their useful life. This keeps downtime short and planned so that your productivity never suffers. Best of all, maintenance on your loading dock doors ensures your building stays within fire code.

Your Loading Dock Optimization Partner

Loading docks are a complex dance of parts and people all working together to get the job done. Our solutions team looks after those moving parts so that you can focus on what matters most to your business. Your people. Our expert technicians are certified to install, service, and maintain all your loading dock equipment, from doors to dock locks. Let us keep your loading dock in peak performance. To learn more about optimizing your loading dock or to request a quote, contact us online or visit one of our locations throughout Georgia and Florida.

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