The Ingenuity of Being Made in USA
Few words ring with more pride than the words “Made in USA.” Home to many industrial, mechanical and production system inventions that have changed the way the world thinks and works, the USA is a place where figuring things out and making them better is a part of the American way. With this in mind, when it comes to mechanical equipment and accessories, having the “Made in USA” words on a product is an assurance that is worth more than merely the words indicating the location of manufacture. They carry with them a reputation of durability and toughness. The words also carry with them a history of hardworking people developing better systems and tools to do any job better and more efficient.
Something Small That Can Make All the Difference
When trying to do a job better and with more efficiency, sometimes it is the small things that can make all the difference. One of the most useful small accessories that are very often overlooked is the caster. In fact, the caster, the rolling mechanism that enables so many things to be made mobile is often not even noticed until it is either broken or malfunctioning. However, when the caster is smooth and in working order it can make many jobs easier and more efficient to accomplish and even makes some jobs possible that otherwise would not have been. From equipment, to furniture, to other immobile items, adding casters is what keeps many businesses on the go. And many different industries utilize casters, including doctors’ offices, hospitals, pharmacies, caterers, nail salons, spas, florists, churches, grocery stores, courier businesses, retail stores, offices, schools, retirement homes, daycares, rest homes and more. These businesses utilize casters on various items, including office equipment, medical equipment, furniture, mechanical equipment, moving equipment and many more items.
Questions, Questions, Questions
With all the possibilities of uses and the many work environments in which casters may be used it is important to understand the wide variety of options that is available to choose from. And it is also important to understand how the different available options interact with the environments in which they might be used. In order to understand this, it is important to know as many details as possible about the job to be performed. There are many simple questions that can be asked to have a clearer picture of the job to be performed so that the correct caster can be matched to the job. Some of the questions that will help to determine the type of job to be performed and the conditions in which it will be performed include:
What needs to be moved? Is it one large item or many small items? Is it oddly shape? Does it need to be handled with special care? Is it fragile? What is its total weight? Is it unusually heavy or is the weight distributed in an unbalanced manner? How far does it need to be moved? Over what type of terrain will it need to traverse? Is the ground man made or natural? Is the terrain rough or smooth? Is it smooth but grooved such as tile? Or is it a combination of textures?
These questions will point you in the right direction to be able to determine which caster will be best suited for the job that has to be accomplished. The next thing to be looked at is the different caster options available.
Casters, Casters, Caster
Matching the best caster for the job helps to ensure that you will get the most out of the caster purchased. Choosing the best caster can be a difficult task because there are many options to fulfill any need. Standard casters are divided into three categories, Light, Medium and Heavy. These weight designations refer to the individual load capacities not to the caster themselves, although they are available in differing weights. The differing load capacities are made possible because of the combination of the makeup, design and material of each individual caster.
An additional specific option to consider is the mounting system, which determines how the caster will be attached to the item it needs to be attached to. Some basic mounting options that are available include: top plate, threaded stem, stainless steel, expanding adapter stem, square stem, grip ring stem, pipe thread stem, modular stem, top plate swivel, and the kingpinless top plate. Some of the available wheel material options include: performa, performa conductive, polyolefin, polyurethane Hi-Tech, phenolic, cast iron, maxim, and thermo.
And More Casters
With the variety of specifications that can be matched there are already a plethora of caster options. However, if none of the basic options meets your need there may be a more specialized option that will be perfect. These casters are considered specialty casters. Some of specialty caster options available include: spring loaded door casters, gravity lock ladder casters, concealed side mount casters, die-cast aluminum leveling casters, rug runner casters, high-capacity, low overall height extrathane casters and glass cutting table casters. With all of the possible combinations of specifications it is possible to find the perfect caster.
Brands You Can Trust from a Company You Can Trust
We know that options can make a decision confusing. At Douglas Equipment, with more than fifty years in the business, we also understand the importance of quality and trust. We have worked hard to create a reputation of trust with our customers and one of the ways in which we have done so is by offering quality-made products accompanied by extensive product knowledge. Many of the products we offer are Made in the USA. We strive to offer our customers the best products so that you can do your best business in your line of work and for your clients and customers. Please contact us Toll-free at 1-800-451-0030, or locally at 305-888-3700. You can also reach us through the Contact Us section on our website. We look forward to working with you.
