Material handling
From wikiMHEDA
Material handling is the movement, storage, control and protection of materials, goods and products throughout the process of manufacturing, distribution, consumption and disposal. The focus is on the methods, mechanical equipment, systems and related controls used to achieve these functions. See also, supply chain, supply chain management, logistics and third party logistics. Note that all of referenced terms are highly interrelated and their definitions are frequently intermingled.[1]
History
While there is no way to determine the origin of material handling as a concept, the industry of material handling goes hand-in-hand with commercial trade. As long as trade has been occuring, there has been a need to somehow handle the goods being exchanged. The roots of modern material handling begin with the industrial revolution. Skids and pallets were introduced early in the 20th century to replace wooden boxes, crates, barrels, and kegs, which had previously been used to store and transport goods. Before the mechanization of material handling, barrels had the advantage of being able to be tipped on their side and rolled as a means of transport. Textile sacks had been the primary means for storage and transport of granular products such as flour or feed. The pallet soon replaced many of these other types of unitizing equipment and became an integral part of the material handling industry. Corrugated containers became another monumental piece of material handling equipment. Corrugated paper was invented in the 1850s, and around the turn of the century, corrugated shipping containers began to replace their wooden counterparts. This new type of container greatly reduced packaging and shipping costs by switching to more inexpensive and lighter paper-based packaging materials.
The adoption of corrugated packaging by rail and road freight authorities led to an increase in popularity for the new material. The dominant mode of transit, the railroad, accepted corrugated packaging for the packaging of various products in 1914. The motor carriers adopted similar policies in 1935, and included the use of fiberboard packaging as well. The shift toward corrugated packaging took place before the pallet gained widespread popularity, although the pallet would eventually become the standard means for packaging and shipping goods.[2]
- For more information on the history of material handling read an article in The MHEDA Journal
