Original Date: 02/28/2000
Revision Date: 01/18/2007

Crane Army Ammunition Activity performs demilitarization on numerous types of military munitions including the handling of the 16" bag charge containers. The Activity installed a power conveyor system to transport the containers from the end point of the production line to an awaiting gondola-type rail car.

Crane Army Ammunition Activity (CAAA) performs demilitarization on numerous types of military munitions. The demilitarization handling of the 16" bag charge containers had provided a source of bottleneck during the unpacking operations. These charges were received in aluminum containers that were 5.5' long by 16" in diameter and weighed approximately 65 pounds after the explosives were removed. The original process required operators to manually remove the containers from the unpacking tables and place them on a two-wheeled dolly for transport to an awaiting gondola-type rail car where the containers were unsystematically dumped. A number of ergonomic problems arose from this operation such as strained backs, pinched fingers, and aching joints. To alleviate the problems, CAAA installed a power conveyor system to transport the containers from the end point of the production line to the awaiting gondola. The containers were then manually stacked into the gondolas to organize the storage area. This process eliminated the need for frequent movement of the gondola, decreased the number of gondolas by 400%, significantly reduced the number of injuries, and increased production from 180 to 224 units per shift.

For more information see the Point of Contact for this survey.