Why Your Warehouse Staff Need Training On Equipment

Training in the warehouse is vital for many reasons. From a financial standpoint, training is often needed as a result of monetary investment in new technology, facilities or equipment. 

From a customer satisfaction point of view, the proficiency of warehouse staff affects the speed at which merchandise moves in and out of a warehouse and from a safety perspective, staff absenteeism and workplace accidents are reduced when they are regularly trained on how to handle equipment.

Forklifts are essential equipment in modern warehouses and they are widely used across Singapore. Below are the reasons why your warehouse staffs need training on equipment.

Training Saves Business Time and Boosts Productivity

Proper forklift training can boost your company’s overall productivity thus giving you a competitive edge. Trained forklift operators and other warehouse staff spend less time picking the right equipment for a job, manoeuvring it to do the job and handling a job.

These are essential qualities you want to see especially in a warehouse that handles e-commerce orders where turnaround time is critical for client satisfaction. It is also sufficient motivation to keep you training your warehouse staff.

Training Prevents Accidents

The number of accidents in a warehouse will drastically reduce if you maintain a regular, consistent and frequent training schedule. 

For instance, forklift training equips operators with the skills they need to handle tasks properly and avoid injuring themselves. Workers can get injured through accidents or if they operate equipment for prolonged time whilst in a wrong position.

Injuries at the warehouse not only reflect poorly on business but also trigger delays due to increased staff downtime. 

So, schedule frequent training for the sake of your team’s wellness, to maintain uptime and to save on health insurance costs.

Training Prevents Pilferage and Inventory Losses

Accidents do not just result in human injuries and downtime, they can also lead to loss of inventory which is accounted for as losses. Forklift training enables your warehouse team to keep such losses at bay because the staffs are watchful of their health and skilled in handling the goods.

Training Reduces Maintenance Costs

When staffs are trained on proper handling and equipment operation there are fewer instances of equipment breakdown and wear and tear slows down. Forklift training enables operators to keep the machinery running in mint condition and minimizes the cost of repairs and replacements. 

An untrained operator cannot diagnose if a machine is faulty and may end up operating it and turn a bad situation into worse. However, training warehouse staff helps you identify faulty equipment ahead of time enabling early service and thus keep maintenance costs down and productivity up.

Lastly, Proper Training Protects the Equipment from Damage

Warehouse equipment is not cheap. You probably spent a significant portion of capital acquiring valuable assets. Many companies continue to pay for the price of acquiring the assets long after they’ve been operational.

The last thing you want to hear is that your equipment is damaged. Equipment damage happens more frequently when the operators are not trained. 

Forklift training gives your teams the skills to operate the equipment properly and keep the assets in top condition, keeping your business productively afloat.

At first, you may have thought that such training may be deemed unnecessary. But now that you are aware of the different reasons, it’s time you take action and give your staff the training that they need if you want your business to flourish.