Principles of Material Handling

Planning

Principle Operating Principle Equipment Principle Costing Principle General Principle

Planning Principle
1. 2.

Plant Layout principle Delegation of responsibility principle

Separate Dept. Operators not for mat. handling Mat. not lifted manually beyond waist height Over 20 kgs mechanical system
3.

Minimisation of re-handling principle

move to point of use Proper height Non mixing of sorting mat. No twice movement of mat. in same direction.

4.

Space Saving principle - cubic content

Non spreading of mat. on floor Palletisation and stocking Congestion retards flow Space costs money use monorail devices

Operating Principles
1.

Unit load handling principle

Bulk/Lots : Pallets, Trolley Tray, Piling.

2. 3.

Gravity principle

Roll or slide down

Flow of materials principle

Steady flow Straight Path Minimum backtracking

Equipment Principles
1.

Mechanisation principle

Reduces handling cost, speed, safety, productivity. Heavy Materials Continuous labour cost eliminated All considerations: cost, flexibility, time, volume
2.

Terminal time principle

Waiting time: pickup and put down time Palletisation and unit load

3.

Dead Weight principle

Ratio of load handled to dead weight of equipment. minimum dead weight Weight of trays, trolleys and pallets
4.

Standardisation principle

Interchangeability Reduces investment in spares inventory Reduces maintenance and repairs cost

5.

Maintenance principle

Systematic maintenance Preventive maintencance Impact of machine failure

6.

Speed principle

Pallets of square in shape: fork entry in any side Two way traffic route Gangways clear Sufficient supply of boxes, pallets, containers to eliminate waiting

Costing Principles
1.

Equipment selection principle

Most flexible: min. operating cost Equipment selection decision

2.

Replacement principle

Economic retentive period Repair cost Breakdown cost

3.

Handling cost appraisal principle

Periodic analysis of mat. handling costs highlights areas of improvement

General Principles
1.

Safety principle

Hot material Gangways lighted and unobstructed Operators well trained Aisles wide Safety regulations
Basic training to every employee Effect of MH on product cost and quality At end of operation job positioned such that it is ready to move.

2.

Training principles

3.

Identification principle

Labelling on pallets and boxes Bar code system

4.

Location principle

MHE placed at right place and right time

5.

Material treatment principle

Scarp and end pieces Low value bulky mat.cost

Selection of mat. handling equipment

Mat. to be handled Plant buildings Layout Speed requirement Mat. flow pattern Method of production Distance moved Safety requirement Installation and operating cost Flexibility

Belt Conveyor

Belt Conveyor

Roller Conveyor

Screw Conveyor

Screw Conveyor

Monorail conveyor

Monorail Conveyor

Vibrating Conveyor

Oscillating Conveyor

Hand operated tuck

Fork Lift Truck

Tractor Trailer

Hoist

Overhead Bridge Crane

Gentry Crane

Jib Crane

Ropeways

Slides and Chutes

Lifts

Tractor and Trailer

Objectives of mat. handling

Speed and economy Min. cost Prevention of damages Safety Min. fatigue and labour Improvement in productivity Higher plant efficiency Greater utilization of MHE Good Housekeeping Lower investment in WIP

Symptoms of Poor MH

Production losses due to delays Long queues Congestion Material damage Skilled labour: MH operations Piling of WIP Over crowded floor areas Mat. mixups Frequent breakdown of MHE Excessive loading and unloading time Aisles/ passages blocked Bad housekeeping