Are data center workers human server-lifting forklifts?

Over one third of injuries in the data center come from manual server lifting and handling. Musculoskeletal disorders account for about 60% of those. Some equipment weighs as much as a Harley-Davidson Fat Boy.

Data center managers in the United States need hard limits for people doing manual handling. OSHA suggests 50 lb as a maximum. Knowing what actually changes a person’s capacity; the task, the load, the environment, the individual; is how you write a process that does not put a technician in a clinic.

Four things that decide whether the lift is legal and sane

• The task; too long or too frequent and 40 lb is already too much.
• The load; size, shape, and whether it can be gripped. A 650 lb chassis is not a box.
• The environment; two-tile aisles, raised floors, heat, cable ramps.
• The person; height, condition, and whether they have already done eight of these today.

A refrigerator is about 200 lb. Seven 24-pack cases of beer are about 250 lb. A piano is 400 lb. Nobody asks a tech to deadlift a piano down a containment aisle. Plenty of halls still ask them to land a 400-plus pound switch by hand.

The question is simple: are your technicians human forklifts, or is it time for a data center lift? The 600RS is the device tool. The RL3500S and RL5000S are the cabinet tools. All of them are USA equipment from BIAC Broadband USA, Inc.