Michelfelder Workshops Improve Safety with Hovmand Lifters

Michelfelder Workshops, part of the Regens Wagner Foundation in Germany, has significantly improved its workplace safety and employee independence by integrating mobile lifters from Danish manufacturer Hovmand A/S. These workshops provide people with disabilities opportunities for stable employment and structured daily routines.

The workshops' assembly and coupling-assembly teams handle components for industrial applications, including compressed-air quick couplings. These parts are delivered in boxes weighing up to 30-40 kg. Previously, lifting and transporting these heavy boxes from pallets to workstations required at least two people. Limited space and varying coordination abilities among staff due to disabilities increased the risk of accidents.

Thomas Kürzdörfer, who heads one of the coupling-assembly teams, reports that six Hovmand lifters are now in use. "We saw Hovmand's mobile lifters for the first time at a trade fair," he stated. "A single team member can use a Hovmand lifter to safely lift heavy crates from a pallet to their workplace, set them down, and then stack them precisely." This has eliminated the need for multiple individuals and enabled all team members to perform the task.

Matthias Fiedler, head of the Michelfeld workshops, highlights the lifters' ease of use and maneuverability in tight spaces. "The number one selling point for us was ease of use. Our staff members are able to position the electric lifter with the push of a button," Fiedler commented. Furthermore, Hovmand Impact 80 L lifters with forks are utilized for moving large cable drums. Kürzdörfer confirms that since the introduction of the lifters, workplace accidents and complaints of back pain from heavy lifting have ceased.