Safety is a Classic at Harley-Davidson

At Harley-Davidson, safety is riding high. In its corporate philosophies, work structure and even the equipment it invests in, safety is an important factor. In perhaps no area of its business operations is this more evident than on the loading docks of its two-year old Parts Distribution Center in Franklin, WI.

Starting with the building's initial design, Harley's management demonstrated a firm commitment to employee safety. The loading dock, thought of as perhaps the most potentially hazardous area by company management, was specified with state-of-the-art safety equipment. Employee focus groups analyzed and participated in the selection of all the equipment for the facility. Teams researched, tested, and selected everything: racking, RF devices, fork trucks, dock plates, doors, restraints, dock gates and trailer restraints.

Rite-Hite Corporation products were chosen at the loading docks due to the high level of safety incorporated into their design. As a result, Harley-Davidson created the most complete loading dock safety system possible.

Filling a Gap in Loading Dock Safety
With the recent international release of Rite-Hite's Global Wheel-Lok (GWL 2000) vehicle restraint, Harley management saw an opportunity to fill a gap in its loading dock system that previous vehicle restraints on the market were not able to address.

"Increasingly, we are seeing more trailers with either liftgates or very low trailer bed heights," says Larry Kozelek, plant operations manager at the 286,000-square foot facility just south of Milwaukee. "Vehicle restraints that grab the trailer's rear impact guard are unable to secure those vehicles types and, before the release of the GWL 2000, wheel restraining systems we looked at weren't ideal for our application either."

Able to secure virtually all types of trailers, the Global Wheel-Lok restraint can resist pullout forces of 32,000 lbs., to help keep a trailer from creeping or pulling away from the dock. The system uses the energy of the backing trailer to position the restraint against the tire with a custom fit, after which a dock worker inside the building pushes a control button to lock the system in place.

The simple electro-mechanical design significantly cuts down on the number of motor driven parts. Kozelek says that the reliability the restraint has already shown in Europe, together with the flexibility it offers in accommodating such a wide range of vehicles "puts our facility in prime position for the future."

Of its other 21 dock positions, 16 employ Dok-Lok LDL-500 vehicle restraints and two are equipped with original dual-barrier Wheel-Lok restraints. The remaining three dock positions are reserved for deliveries by UPS and other non-conventional shipping and receiving vehicles. At these positions the company mandates that wheel chocks be used during loading and unloading operations.

"We've seen the accidents that other companies have had when trailers aren't properly restrained," says Kozelek. "By being as safety conscious as we are, we feel we've virtually guaranteed our employees' safety on the loading dock. It makes sense for our employees and it makes sense for the company financially."

A System Approach to Safety
As a symbol of its commitment to the well being of its employees, Harley-Davidson uses safety as a primary component in its five-point star system. Distribution center employees comprise work groups of 5–20 people, with one of them taking the lead in each of five areas: Safety, Quality, Productivity, Administrative Tasks and Employee Development. At the top of the star, the Safety Point Person assists in training the work group on unit safety, health, and accident prevention as well as reporting near misses and accidents. Each month all 18 Safety Point Persons meet to discuss challenges and solutions to keeping the entire facility as safe as possible. Since the date of the building's construction, no incident reports have been filed from the loading dock area.

"Our safety record at the loading dock can be attributed to several key factors," notes Kozelek. "Management showed its commitment in the early stages of this facility in outfitting the loading docks with state-of-the-art equipment. Since then, we've done a great job keeping our employees well trained on the proper operation and maintenance of that equipment."

In addition to the vehicle restraints, the facility uses HD-2000 hydraulic dock levelers at every dock position. Also manufactured by Rite-Hite, the levelers have obvious ergonomic and performance advantages over their mechanical and power-assisted counterparts, but moreover, they were designed with advanced safety benefits.

In particular, the leveler provides an automatic return-to-dock feature, which returns the leveler to a safe level for cross-traffic after use. It also features hydraulic velocity fuse free-fall protection, which stops the rapid fall of the leveler in the event the lip loses contact with the trailer bed during loading or unloading. Conventional mechanical and power-assisted levelers use mechanical safety legs that are retracted by pulling a chain when servicing trailers below dock height.

As Kozelek notes, "If we used those levelers, every time a below-dock-height trailer was serviced by a forklift, not only would we have to pull a chain, we could be taking a chance on free-fall protection. That was an important reason why we specified the HD-2000. We know that our employees are as safe as they can be when they are servicing those vehicles "

Also a key factor in the company's impeccable shipping and receiving safety record are the automatic Safe-T-Gate barriers guarding the opening to every dock position. Dock workers are trained to keep the push-button activated gates cycled down whenever the dock positions are vacant. Rated to stop a 10,000-lb. forklift travelling at 4 m.p.h., the Safe-T-Gates protect plant personnel and equipment from falls off the dock.

The Highest Standards
While few corporations can claim to be icons of the American way of life, since the turn of the century, Harley-Davidson has done just that. It's taken a commitment to the highest standards of quality together with dedicated employees supported by the best equipment on the market.

"When we invest in equipment, especially in an area as critical as the loading dock, we always look for three things," says Kozelek. "It needs to be flexible enough to suit our needs well into the future. Second, it has to meet the same standards of quality and innovation that Harley-Davidson puts into its motorcycles. And last, but most important, it must add to the high level of safety at the facility."

With the facility's recent purchase of the Global Wheel-Lok vehicle restraint, Kozelek's three criteria have been met. The restraint has the flexibility to accommodate almost any trailer, and has operated flawlessly, even through a harsh Wisconsin winter. "The GWL 2000 has filled a gap in our safety program on our loading docks. Now, and well into the future, we'll be able to accommodate virtually any vehicle that calls on our facility."