Evergreen Exterior Services Ltd, a wholesale plant nursery employing 54 staff, had the every day task of moving very large plants and trees in pots. The plants were heavy, bulky and of varied sizes and shapes, which together presented a serious manual handling challenge.
The company sourced a specialized barrow for moving the largest plants. The length of the handle and the diameter of the clasp are adjustable to take account of the size of the pot. The introduction of the barrow, makes it much easier for staff to transport plants around the site and on and off vehicles. Staff report there is now no strain on their backs. An additional benefit is that it now takes only one person to move a plant, whereas before it took at least two.
The barrow was imported from Italy and is not easily available in the UK, so the company has developed a service for its trade customers and imports the barrows to sell with the plants. Customers are much more willing to buy the larger plants and turnover has increased.
The company has also bought a new fork lift truck to help with loading and is working, with the company that supplied the barrow, to design a FLT attachment for handling full-grown trees in pots.
