Thanks to wireless technology, mobile powered workstations (MPWs) are opening up a new frontier of efficiency and productivity. These workstations with integrated power supplies can maneuver computers, printers, scales, barcode scanners, ect., to wherever they are needed. For some facilities, multiple MPWs can bring about a “system solution” – a whole new way of doing business. Capitalizing on the benefits of auto-ID technologies, they integrate the facility’s software with devices on the workstations to establish mobile on-demand label printing stations, mobile shipping/receiving stations, and so on.
We’ll touch upon three basic ways a mobile powered workstation (MPW) can help you take full advantage of wireless technology to improve your business. This includes:
- Time and Labor Savings
- Improved Employee Morale
- Improved Versatility
1. Time and Labor Savings
2. Improved Employee Morale
Mentally and physically, consciously and subconsciously, employees know when their precious time is being wasted. They feel better about their jobs (and their lives in general) when they instead know they are doing work that needs to be done, and doing it efficiently. The efficiency gains provided by an MPW are not only for management ledger sheets but also for employees’ direct, day-to-day experience – greater productivity benefits everyone.
Good MPWs provide specific ergonomic advantages. For starters, the MPW you choose should have adjustable shelves and large, stable work surfaces. Some MPWs allow the shelves to be easily raised and lowered, and some do not. A tall employee should be able to quickly raise a shelf to the most convenient height, and a shorter worker should be able to lower it just as quickly.
Your workstation should have a compact footprint and should be easy to push, with large, easy-to-grip handles and top-quality swivel casters. Casters should provide years of smooth, quiet rolling and positioning, yet must be lockable for stability and safety at the work site.
The size, weight, and capacity of the on-board power package (battery/inverter/charger) are also ergonomic considerations; some packages are bulkier and heavier than others. Because the workstation is wireless, there are no cords long enough to trip over, but for cables connecting the devices on the workstation to each other, the best-designed MPWs have cable management components that keep cabling neat and tangle-free.
3. Improved Versatility
The more your workstation can do, the more your business can accomplish, in ways you might not yet envision. That’s why you’ll want your new MPW to be versatile. Check the weight capacity of individual shelves and of the unit overall. The MPW you buy should definitely be powerful enough to various devices simultaneously – look for one that can hold and power four devices for at least eight hours and can be recharged in five to eight hours.
It’s important that the MPW manufacturer offers multiple options for the workstations power package, and choosing the best one for your business can be difficult on your own. Some MPW manufacturers have technicians who will make sure your package is fully integrated with the devices you intend to run, and some even have software tools on their websites that will help the customer choose the most appropriate power package by calculating the total wattage of the equipment to be supported.
last but not least, your MPW should be modular – designed to accept many different accessories for your specific application. Accessories include additional shelves, drawers, keyboard trays, laptop holders, flat-screen holders, and scanner holders. Like your business, your MPW will what you make of it.
Shop Around
Obviously, different needs require different MPW configurations, so shop around until you find the model that fits your facility. Some basic attributes, such as sturdiness and durability, trump all other characteristics. Because further technological advances will undoubtedly give us new gizmos that will once again require us to reorder our thinking as well as our equipment, versatility and ergonomics should also be at the forefront. Some careful research will lead you to a well-built yet reasonably priced model. You should expect to pay $1,300 to $2,900 for a good MPW, but when you consider the potential for productivity improvement, it should pay for itself many times over.
About Newcastle Systems
Newcastle Systems’ commitment is to provide innovative solutions that help make Auto-ID Technology and other hardware truly more mobile and information more readily available across an entire enterprise.
Loss of productivity and inefficiencies such as wasted steps to the printer, inaccurate inventory counts, improper labeling, time delays, manual processing and incorrect shipments are just some of the challenges that are alleviated with a mobile powered workstation.
Production Automation is a proud distributor of Newcastle Systems, and we offer three styles of Newcastle Mobile Power Carts, a design to work in any office, warehouse, retail location, or factory floor. We also offer a broad range of Newcastle accessories to customize your power cart to your applications and needs. To get started simply click this link and browse our website. If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to contact us at 888-903-0333 or [email protected], one of our sales staff will be more than happy to help answer questions or get you more information about any of the products we sell on our website (www.gotopac.com)
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