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Hello everyone, Marty T Hawkins with you, and welcome back to Warehouse and Operations as a Career!
I was looking through the job boards and Facebook groups this week and noticed an unusual amount of advertisements for EPJ operators, and several comments about what does EPJ mean, and do they train, a few asked what kind EPJ. In the business EPJ is short for Electric Pallet Jack. Skimming over the job descriptions I believe the Recruiters are typically referring to the Platform Electric pallet jack or Rider Pallet jack. One comment to the advertisements was do you have to be certified. I’ll go into that here in a few minutes, as a long term listener you’ll remember I have some strong opinions on that sentence and believe you should never operate or even touch a piece of powered industrial equipment or any type of machine you’re not trained, and certified to be on. But, like I said, we’ll get to that in a minute.
So, today, lets focus on that tool that has been instrumental in shaping how modern warehouses operate—the pallet jack. From manual models to the more advanced electric platform rider pallet jacks, these machines have made it easier, faster, and safer to move materials in large and small operations alike.
To give us a starting point I’d like to delve into the history of pallet jack, explore their various types, and examine the different warehouse roles where they’ve become so important. We’ll also take a close look at the safety practices that every operator should follow to ensure efficient and injury-free operation.
We’ll start manual pallet jack which dates back to the early 1900s, a time when the logistics and distribution industry was growing rapidly. Before the introduction of pallet jacks, warehouse workers relied almost entirely on brute strength to lift and move goods. Heavy crates, barrels, and bags were transported by hand or with make shift carts, making the process slow, labor-intensive, and quite frankly dangerous. The introduction of pallets into warehouses marked a pivotal change. As goods started to be stacked on these wooden or metal platforms and skids, a new type of machine was required to lift and move them efficiently—and thus, the manual pallet jack was born.
The design of the manual pallet jack was simple yet highly effective. A hydraulic pump allowed workers to lift a loaded pallet just a few inches off the ground by pumping the handle. The load could then be pulled or pushed across the warehouse floor. This invention increased efficiency and reduced the physical strain on workers, allowing a single person to move loads that previously required several workers. The benefits was huge.
- Increased Efficiency: By using a pallet jack, workers could move heavier loads in far less time than before, improving productivity.
- Reduced Injuries: The risk of back strains, muscle pulls, and other injuries decreased significantly. Workers no longer needed to physically lift the full weight of a load.
- And think of the Cost Savings: Since manual pallet jacks were relatively inexpensive to manufacture and maintain, warehouses could invest in them easily. They didn’t require fuel or electricity, making them an affordable option for smaller operations or facilities with small budgets.
These a great workhorses and even today most warehouses will have several on hand, especially in retail backrooms, and tight spaces where electric or larger pallet jacks may not be practical.
The next significant evolution came with the introduction of electric pallet jacks, also known as walk-beside models. These began appearing in the mid-20th century, around the 1950s and 1960s, as the demand for faster, more efficient warehouse operations increased. Electric pallet jacks were designed to handle larger volumes of goods, reduce operator fatigue, and provide a safer work environment by minimizing the physical effort needed to transport even heavier and larger loads.
An electric pallet jack operates using a rechargeable battery that powers a motor, which assists with both lifting and moving the pallet. With the press of a button, the forks can be raised or lowered, and the motor helps move the pallet over longer distances with ease.
A few of these advantages are:
Increased Speed and Distance: Operators can move loads more quickly than with manual models. This is especially important in larger warehouses where distance can affect productivity.
Reduced Physical Strain: Workers no longer need to manually pump a hydraulic handle or use their body weight to push heavy loads. The electric motor does the heavy lifting and moving, which significantly reduces the risk of injury, particularly repetitive strain injuries.
And as I mentioned they can handle a Higher Load Capacity: Electric pallet jacks can handle heavier loads than manual ones, making them ideal for high-volume environments like manufacturing plants, grocery warehouses, and distribution centers.
In addition to their speed and power, walk-beside models are often equipped with safety features such as emergency stop buttons and reverse controls to prevent accidents. Walk-beside EPJs are now a common sight in medium to large warehouses, even in a few retail operations, where increased load capacities and quicker transport times are required.
As warehouses continued to expand in size and the volume of goods being handled grew, the platform rider pallet jack was introduced to further streamline the material handling process. These models are similar to the walk-beside pallet jacks, but with an important difference: they feature a platform that allows the operator to ride along with the machine, significantly reducing the amount of walking and manual effort required.
For operators, this model is a significant ergonomic improvement. Instead of walking along behind the pallet jack, the operator stands on a platform and steers the jack as it moves. This design is particularly useful in large-scale operations, such as retail distribution centers and fulfillment warehouses where the speed and efficiency of moving goods are paramount. A few key benefits of the platform rider jacks are:
Increased productivity: Operators can move from one end of the warehouse to the other much more quickly while riding the platform, which increases the number of loads they can transport in a shift.
Ergonomic Design: Standing on a platform reduces physical strain and fatigue from walking long distances. Operators can work more comfortably and for longer periods, which helps with efficiencies and reduces the risk of injuries such as foot and leg strain.
Increased Throughput: Since platform rider pallet jacks can carry heavy loads over long distances more efficiently, they help increase throughput in busy warehouse environments. This makes them ideal for fast-paced distribution centers handling large volumes of goods daily, and those paid by the piece payroll models.
You’ll find platform rider pallet jacks in places like e-commerce fulfillment centers, grocery chain distribution hubs, and large manufacturing plants where speed and efficiency are critical to operations.
Pallet jacks are widely used across different positions in warehouse operations. Here are some of the key roles that comes to mind that can rely on these machines:
Order Selectors
Order selectors are responsible for picking products from storage and preparing them for shipment. Manual and electric pallet jacks are critical for this role. A selector typically uses a pallet jack to move an empty pallet or a few selected items as they navigate the aisles. In larger warehouses, they may use an electric ride pallet jack to transport multiple orders at once, especially in high-volume environments like grocery or retail distribution centers.
Receivers and Loaders
Receivers handle the intake of goods into the warehouse. They rely on pallet jacks to unload products from trucks and move them to their designated storage areas. Electric pallet jacks and even rider jacks are particularly useful in this role, allowing receivers to move large shipments quickly and efficiently. Loaders, who are responsible for preparing goods for outbound shipments, can depend on pallet jacks to load trucks for delivery. For high-volume shipping operations, platform rider pallet jacks are often used to speed up the loading process.
Stockers
Stockers are responsible for replenishing shelves or storage areas within the warehouse. Manual pallet jacks are often used for smaller loads or in tighter spaces, but electric pallet jacks are essential when transporting large quantities of products across long distances.
Safety is crucial when it comes to operating any warehouse equipment, and electric pallet jacks are no exception. While EPJs greatly reduce the physical strain on workers, they also introduce new potential risks if not operated properly. Here are some safety tips, well more important that tips I guess because their part of the standard and law that every operator must follow:
Before using an electric pallet jack, it’s essential to perform a pre-operational check or your pre-trip:
Check the battery: Ensure the battery is fully charged and shows no signs of damage or leakage.
Inspect the equipment: Look for any visible wear or damage, especially on the wheels, forks, and control panel.
Test the brakes and controls: Make sure all the controls, especially the emergency stop button, are functional.
Operators should always maintain a clear line of sight when moving a load. Remember the old saying, look before moving the first inch! Operators should also be mindful of their surroundings, watching out for obstacles, spills, or uneven flooring that could cause accidents.
It’s so important to always respect the load limits of the pallet jack. Overloading the EPJ can lead to tipping, mechanical failure, or loss of control. Balancing the load is equally important to prevent accidents and ensure safe transport.
For platform rider models, operators should always stand within the designated area and avoid leaning outside the platform. We have to keep our feet on the platform, especially watching that our toes and heels don’t ever hang off the edges.
Operators have to be familiar with the pallet jack’s emergency stop features and know how to safely shut down the equipment in case of malfunction. Any equipment issues should be reported to a supervisor or maintenance team immediately.
The pallet jack is one of the most versatile and essential tools in warehouse operations. Its evolution from the manual model to the advanced platform rider reflects the changing demands of the logistics and distribution industry. Theres even double and triple pallet jacks now, meaning you can carry one, two, and three pallets at a time. Whether you’re an order selector, receiver, unloader, stocker, etc, understanding how to properly use and maintain these machines is key to improving efficiency and safety in any warehouse setting.
And back to that question of do I have to be certified. Yes, here in the states your employer is required to certify you on equipment operation. Check out the OSHA 29CFR1910.178 for specifics of that certification. You may have heard me get upset, and feel for people that have gone to a training facility that’s ran them through a 2 hour classroom portion of instruction and taken them out to a warehouse environment and demonstrated and observed them on a piece of equipment and given them a card or license that they’ve paid XXX number of dollars for. These men and women then carry these cards to an employment agency or a place of business only to find that they need experience to qualify for a position.
I won’t climb up on my soap box again, but it does remind me that we need to do another episode on how to become an EPJ or forklift operator when you have no experience and some actual short cuts that can be taken or quicker ways to get that experience to learn and perform safely.
Well, I’ve ran long today, and for that I apologize, but, well, I get to talking! Until next week, y’all be safe out there.