Big Box store warehouse

Magnetic Sweepers are used in many, many industries for a multitude of purposes. One of the more interesting uses is in the distribution facilities of the nations’ big box stores.   Aside from visiting their local big box store for discounted, cheap goods, most people don’t think about the process of getting the items to the actual store itself.

All of the stores utilize massive central distribution facilities dispersed geographically throughout the county. These facilities take up hundreds of acres of land and have hundreds, if not thousands of semi-tractor trailer rigs coming and going 24/7 with goods headed to stores.   Much of these goods are imported goods, having just been delivered through customs and uncrated prior to re-packaging and delivery to the final retail destination.  It is precisely this industrial activity taking place within the distribution center which warrants the use of magnetic sweepers.

The magnetic sweeper is typically mounted on the “switcher” truck which moves trailers around from dock to dock or from cab to dock. These magnetic sweepers pick up and remove all damaging ferrous metal which would otherwise puncture the truck tires and cause massive equipment downtime and lost revenues for the big box store. Nearly all of the big box stores use magnetic sweepers in their operations, they have to as there really is no other random, effective, ongoing method for keeping terminal and distribution areas free of ferrous metal. These magnetic sweepers operate round the clock and cover all traffic areas. The magnetic sweepers used come from manufacturers within the U.S.; as any experienced facilities manager knows, using an imported item is far too risky and ineffective. Aside from sub-par construction, the imported magnetic sweeper simply does not perform nearly as well as the U.S. made counterpart. That is why the imported magnetic sweeper is usually much less expensive – they don’t work.

Ironically, 9 times out of 10 shoppers at big box stores searching for a magnetic sweeper cannot find a U.S.-made item.  More often than not, it is the inexpensive import on the shelf, being sold at a fraction of the cost, the cheapest version possible. Never will you find the big box store itself using this type of magnet because they know better; the units simply don’t work.

This is testimonial to the effectiveness of the American-made magnetic sweeper.  It works. It is a superior product sold for a fair price. The quality is not something any imported magnetic sweeper will ever be able to match. If the overseas folks decided to make an industrial magnet which was on par with its American counterpart, and by the time ocean freight costs, customs fees and land transportation are factored in, it would be beyond cost-prohibitive for any overseas manufacturer to compete. Once again, smart retailers know that for their supply chain to remain efficient, they are better off using the American-made product.

About the author : Shields Magnetics

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