Powered hand truck wins Australian safety award

A powered hand truck from Makinex has won the Safe Work Australia Award for good design.

The new machine was designed to replace the need for forklifts for smaller lifting tasks and enables one person to safely lift and load small equipment or bulky goods weighing up to 140kg.

Since using the Powered Hand Truck, Australian rental company Kennards Hire has seen a 34% decrease in shoulder and back injuries in the workplace, Makinex said.

The inaugural Safe Work Australia Award for Good Design was selected from finalists across all categories in the 2016 Good Design Awards. Makinex were presented with their award as part of the 2016 Good Design Awards ceremony on 27 May, 2016.

Safe Work Australia CEO Michelle Baxter said, “A focus on health and safety in design helps eliminate hazards and risks before they enter the workplace. Good work design can radically transform the workplace in ways that benefit the business, workers, clients and others in the supply chain.”

Kennards Hire CEO Rory Kennard added, “Makinex is about making inefficiencies extinct, where the name itself comes from this driving force.

"Makinex strives towards continuous improvement by looking close at its business to find unique, innovative and practical product solutions that provide the construction and rental industries with a better way to do their jobs to save time, physical effort and money.”

Makinex said it planned to expand its product range as well as grow in both local and global markets. In the UK, Morris Site Machinery is the importer distributor of the Makinex powered hand truck, where it is known as the Easy Lift 140.