Case Study Menards

Menards is a home improvement warehouse that is like Home Depot, or Lowes. This chain is primarily located in the Midwest with the headquarters in Wisconsin. They incorporate a typical storefront design like the others with some warehouse space that is unavailable to customers. Their uniqueness, however, is that they have a large outside storage area including a separate building or two that houses building materials including many types of lumber, drywall, shingles, and other large products. This design presents many opportunities as well as challenges. The risk assessment was done during the day that this essay was written. This storefront located in Lebanon, Indiana was built just a few years ago, and would earn a passing grade. However,

Trusses were being loaded and fell onto an outside contractor, killing him (Menards, 1997). The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) found several violations. “Menards was cited for not having employees wear protective helmets, footwear or hand guards when needed; for improperly operating forklifts; for not providing adequate forklift training and markings; for workers being placed in positions of danger while loading a bundle of roof trusses onto a truck; and for not keeping proper injury records” (Menards, 1997, para.

There is adequate lighting, and the space between rows and aisles are very suitable. The floor is concrete that is still in very good condition without a feeling of being slippery. I did notice in a few places that concrete was eroding away that could be a hazard. Luckily, this should be an inexpensive fix. Home improvement warehouses should have an advantage over other types of retailers with the wide array of knowledge and expertise that many of the associates have in the construction industry. The major risk observed in this facility was slip, trip, and falls. It was observed that many boxes and open products were on the floor in aisle ways, and other locations that customers walk around. The disturbing aspect is that the company didn’t seem to emphasize this risk to the employees. In many instances, associates were walking right next to and near these locations without noticing a problem. Each department should have a designated area for receiving product from the warehouse, and use carts or pallet jacks to move inventory around with to stock shelves. Also, the bulk of stocking shelves should be done when there are no customers present. Even forklift operators are replenishing bays during store hours while customers shop. In addition to safety concerns, this promotes a negative view to the customer having to avoid getting hit, or waiting for a forklift to finish blocking an aisle. It