Trolleys are a type of material handling aid on wheels designed to hold and transport products, tools or supplies and reduce or eliminate the need for lifting. Manual handling a trolley potentially requires the capacity to lift, lower, push, pull, move, hold and restrain.
Depending on the types of materials to be transported trolleys can be plastic, metal or wooden; be flat topped, multi level or designed for a specialised purpose. They may or may not have handles. Wheel type and size can also vary depending on the types of terrain the trolley is traveling over, the work environment and whether they need to be lockable.
Some common types of trolleys available include:
- baggage trolleys
- cleaning trolleys
- freight trolleys
- linen trolleys - bag style for dirty linen and shelf style for folded clean linen
- flat topped trolleys with one or multiple shelves including variable handle designs
- tool trolleys that can hold tools and ladders, with either draw or cabinet style storage
- garment hanging trolleys
- legal or document trolleys for transferring large amounts of paper files
- mobile waste trolleys to assist with transferring bins
- sack style trolleys with foldable or adaptable shape models available for transfer of a wide range of items
- chair trolleys for shifting stacks of chairs
- keg trolleys
- commercial kitchen trolleys such as cold and cook units, bain-marie’s, meal delivery trolleys, ingredient bin trolleys or food waste trolleys
- tub style trolleys with or without inbuilt height adjustment
- order picking trolleys which can include ladders for multi-height access
- mail delivery trolleys
- component storage trolleys
- foldable trolleys such as those used for holding a laundry basket
- piano trolleys
- tables on wheels
- industrial style trolleys with height adjustment requiring pumping of the handle to adjust height.
Powered trolleys are also available:
- industrial style trolleys with powered height adjustment capacity with models including tilt capacity or ball transfer units for ease of loading/unloading
- motorised or powered trolleys operated by push button reducing need to push or pull
- powered scooter type attachments powered by rechargeable battery that can be used to allow one person to efficiently collect large amounts of trolleys such as; shopping trolleys or luggage trolleys at airports
- detachable motorised units which can be wheeled under a heavy or awkward trolley or hospital bed and operated by push button to eliminate the pushing force required to move the object. These use a rechargeable battery
- permanent powered attachments which are fixed onto trolleys that cause significant pushing difficulties and are operated by push button.
Workplace solutions and adjustments
For people with disability that restricts lifting or carrying, a wide range of trolleys are available to assist with transporting either the tools required to undertake work tasks or the products or stock used to complete tasks.
When choosing an appropriate trolley, consideration needs to be given to the type and style of items to be transported, terrain over which the trolley will be pushed, any particular hygiene requirements of the workplace, space available for trolley movement, the need for height adjustment and whether a manual or powered trolley would be of most benefit.
It is recommended the provision of lifting and moving equipment such as trolleys, be part of an integrated, organisational approach to occupational health and safety, and used to complement other manual handling hazard control methods.
Trolleys should be serviced regularly to ensure that they are in proper working order as a trolley that is difficult to maneuver and poorly maintained can lead to injuries.
For more information about specific types of lifting and moving equipment please see the links below:
References
Bremco 2008, BMP031 Scissor Life Table Trolley, Bremco Metal Products – Materials Handling Equipment, Brisbane, viewed 25 January 2011, http://www.bremco.com.au/product_info.php?cPath=27_60&products_id=84
Department of Commerce 2008, Manual Handling: Moving Trolleys, Government of Western Australia, Perth, viewed 25 January 2011, http://www.commerce.wa.gov.au/worksafe/content/Safety_Topics/Manual_handling/Further_information/Manual_handling_-_moving_trolleys1.html
Team Systems 2009, Trolleys, Team Systems Pty Ltd, Melbourne, viewed 25 January 2011, http://www.teamsystems.net.au/Melbourne/TROLLEYS.aspx