Finding the Right Utility Cart

You need to get your #10 cans from the truck to the pantry. You're feeding a couple hundred people, so there are a lot of those #10 cans. Instead of the cans getting placed on the cart, the cans end up dropped on the cart and put in the pantry. From the pantry they go to the prep area. Repeat this every week. Maybe every day. You have some employees dropping the can a good half foot. Others think a 300 pound capacity means you can put the entire weight on one shelf.

Weeks and months pass. The shelves on the cart buckle. You're left perplexed as to why the carts aren't holding up better.

You need a sturdier cart. Lakeside can help.

Weight

First, carts have a maximum capacity. If a cart has a 300 pound capacity with three shelves, it means each shelf can hold 100 pounds evenly distributed.

If too much weight is put on one spot, it will start to bow, warping the cart, eventually fully breaking it. Also, the product needs to be placed, not dropped. Dropping a #10 can applies significantly more force to the shelf, which can cause it to buckle.

Casters

Most K12 facilities in Wisconsin have a fairly short travel distance. A basic caster will hold up and get the cart where it's going. But now it's a hospital or ghost kitchen. The carts will be packed up in trucks for transit, rolled over parking lots of varying quality.

With Lakeside, they have double race, double ball-bearing, swivel casters mounted to the frame, allowing greater durability on light loads.

For heavier loads, look into pneumatic casters.

Handles

Your handles aren't going to affect the weight capacity, but it will affect your people. Ergonic handles are verticle handles which account for more heights of operators. This makes it easier to push carts. You won't have people hunched over the cart, slouching because the handle is too low. Which reduces back strain that they feel later, increasing morale. Morale is good.

Conclusion

Lakeside has a number of options. Whether you need a light use 300 pound cart or you need a tank that can traverse a government maintained parking lot in 100 degree heat, Lakeside has the cart you're looking for.

Reach out to Davis & Associates for more information.