How to move supermarket roll cages safely

Roll cages, also known as wheeled cages, warehouse cage trolleys, roll containers or retail cages – are used extensively in retail and warehousing operations.

Individual goods, stock and products are loaded into roll cages and then transported from distribution centres and depots to their final destination, the supermarket.

How are roll cages moved?

Traditionally, individual cages are moved manually. Expecting staff to manually push or pull cages, often weighing up to 500kg, presents several safety challenges, which many businesses are looking to overcome with our Roll Cage Movers.

How are roll containers used in retail deliveries?

When it comes to retail deliveries, roll containers are loaded into the back of a delivery lorry by hand.

With fully loaded retail cages weighing up to 500kg, manually manipulating and positioning these within the lorry can lead to strains and the risk of trapping hands.

On arrival at retail stores, a delivery driver then unloads the supermarket cages, again by hand.

Often, city centre deliveries make this task even more difficult, with drivers typically having to park 100 metres or more away from where roll containers need to be unloaded. This can often mean drivers have to manually push heavy retail cages over long distances and on inclines.

What are the manual handling risks of moving roll cages?

The Health and Safety Executive reports that most retail cage injuries result from:

• Pulling or pushing heavy supermarket cages on slopes
• Trying to prevent rolling cages overbalancing
• Repetitive loading and unloading
• Trapping hands and feet
• Incidents resulting in roll containers falling off tail lifts during loading and unloading.
• Risk of crushing from unbalanced roll containers

How do you move a retail cage safely?

Moving heavy roll containers manually should be avoided where possible. Retailers should implement handling aids like electric Roll Cage Movers for moving heavier cages or where movements are over longer distances or on inclines.

Where the manual movement of cages cannot be avoided, staff should only move one cage at a time, and it’s recommended to push the cage instead of pulling it, as this helps reduce the strain of twisting.

Tips for safer roll container movement

In addition to handling aids, there are several simple actions retailers can take to improve the safety of handling roll containers:

• Quality castors wheels and bearings help reduce the resistance when manually moving
• Routine maintenance of cages is essential
• Ensure roll containers are in full working order
• Replace damaged supermarket cages with new ones
• Correctly load roll containers with heavier items at the bottom

Maximise safety with a Roll Cage Mover

With the Health and Safety Executive reporting that 1/3 of accidents in businesses using rolling cages are cage related – retailers must prioritise cage safety.

Our Roll Cage Movers enable retailers to reduce the risk of injuries and improve workplace safety. With a compact, easy-to-use design, operators can move single or multiple cages with complete control.