Heavy drums filled with metal scrap, tailings, and lubricants can be a shop safety hazard, often leading to operator back, foot, and other injuries.
While the hand truck is the traditional tool of choice for general drum handling on the shop floor, it should carry a safety-enhanced design, ensure a positive grip on the drum, and be rated for transporting drums up to 1,000 lb. By using four wheels instead of two, an ergonomic hand truck eliminates the need for an operator to bear the weight of the load during transport. Plus, the truck’s clamping mechanism must assure that the rimmed drum is always under the operator’s control. Depending on design, the truck may even be capable of picking up drums of various sizes, between 10 to 85 gal, for example, for greater versatility.
Without all these features, the operator runs the risk of losing a drum while moving between machines or in tight aisles, and possibly spilling cutting and hydraulic fluids on the shop floor and/or causing injury to himself or others. One example of a hand truck that incorporates all these safety features and more is the Model 10HT-4W hand truck from Liftomatic. This convenient 4-wheel unit was designed for use in machine shops and metalworking facilities. Learn more about drum-handling safety.