Protect Yourself with an Organized and Safe Service Vehicle

August 23, 2019

Protect Yourself with an Organized and Safe Service Vehicle

For those who utilize service vehicles to perform their jobs, the probability of suffering a workplace injury is high. In fact, the top worker compensation claims involve overexertion and repetitive stress injuries, as well as slips, trips, and falls. These types of injuries result in lost work, decreased productivity, and increased health care costs — and in the worst case a life-long disability.

Service vehicles present many opportunities for these injuries to occur, especially if the vehicles are disorganized or the job requires workers to utilize heavy equipment. Even lighter equipment that must be lifted and transported regularly can result in an injury. Sliding equipment out to you rather than reaching into vehicles is proven to reduce injuries and worker’s compensation claims. Eliminating even one back injury can pay for an entire fleet of Extendobeds.

Equipment Access

A sliding bed in any service vehicle makes equipment access easy and safe regardless of size. While heavy equipment provides the greatest risk to employees, the repetitive motion of moving smaller equipment is also dangerous. Having to reach into a truck bed or van does not allow for the use of proper lifting technique and will no doubt lead to an injury. It’s not a matter of if it will happen, it’s simple a question of when.

Our sliding beds assist with any equipment and storage needs. They help protect employees from objects falling, as well as prevent slips, trips, and falls that result from accessing equipment or putting it away when tired or in a hurry.

Vehicle Entry/Exit Injury Prevention

A common but often overlooked cause of injuries is the simple act of entering and exiting a vehicle throughout the day to access equipment, tools, paperwork, and other job-related items. Stepping into and out of a vehicle leads to bruises, falls, and repetitive stress injuries. Shuffling around for items in a disorganized space opens the door for random injuries such as cutting your hand on a tool while trying to locate something in a dark space. Bruised shins and knees are common, leaving employees sore and distracted by pain — and opening the door to even more serious injuries.

Customized Extendobeds are a simple solution to these problems. They bring the equipment to you in a safe and secure manner. Whether added to a truck, van, or SUV, these beds will protect you and your employees. We have five sliding beds designed to meet various needs and that offer 75% to over 100% extension and hold 300 to 3,000 lbs., including:

Customer Testimonials

Our customers will attest to the increased safety our solutions provide. See the following testimonials:

“I work for one of the largest municipal owned utility companies. In the last 7 years we have installed 60-70 Extendobeds in different types of trucks. Of that number, we finally had one go down. One bearing gave out … after receiving a replacement bearing, it took less than an hour to repair it. Your product has us wondering how we got along without it. We have a better safety record now with no back injuries due to climbing into our utility trucks.”
– E. Peltz

“I love this thing! And so does everyone that sees it. Some of my co-workers are just one more bashed shin (from climbing into their trucks and slipping) from buying one. Me, and my shins, thank you!”
– T. Hall

Don’t wait for an injury to occur before you learn how we can help keep you and your employees safe. Injuries of all types can and will impact your bottom line and could destroy your business. Avoid the risk of an injury creating lifelong pain and suffering for you and your employees.

To learn how a custom Extendobed solution can meet your specific needs, email us at: websales@extendobed.com.

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Focus on Efficiency: Making Use of Smaller Mobile Spaces for Law Enforcement

May 16, 2019

By Extendobed

Focus on Efficiency: Making Use of Smaller Mobile Spaces for Law Enforcement

Law enforcement vehicles tend to be chosen for speed and durability over equipment storage. The typical police cruiser is a sedan, which offers only a trunk for storage. Other law enforcement vehicle models can range up to the size of a large SUV, which provides more space. Variances in law enforcement vehicle sizes can present both opportunities and challenges for equipment storage and transportation.

Because each vehicle model and need is unique, organizing essential tools can be challenging. This is where Extendobed’s stationary units come in. These units capitalize on every inch of space in a vehicle, utilizing features such as full-extension drawers, storage compartments, worktables, and locking evidence boxes.

Organization is crucial for efficient law enforcement, and Extendobed’s stationary units are up to the task.

Custom Units Increase Safety and Efficiency for Law Enforcement

Extendobed’s customized units for vehicles create efficiency in the field for municipal, state, and federal law enforcement agencies. Radios, pepper spray, stop strips, post-event comfort items for victims, and other equipment must be quick to access and easy to restock. When chain of custody comes into play — such as when handling evidence, controlled substances, or dangerous materials — secure storage within the vehicle is important. Limited budgets in smaller municipalities can present additional concerns, further highlighting the importance of efficiency in day-to-day activities for both city and state police officers.

Necessary equipment such as guns, bulletproof vests, police-issue duty belts, handcuffs, tasers, batons, extra magazines, flashlights, and a host of other gear needs to be on hand and ready for officers to use. Imagine what might happen if an officer had to dig into a bag for a tool, while an active dangerous situation played out around them — the outcome of inefficiency in this scenario could be devastating. Having dedicated, safe, controlled spaces for each type of equipment keeps officers and the surrounding community safer.

Even when situations aren’t actively dangerous, the efficiency built into a well-organized mobile work unit makes a difference. Confiscating evidence, labeling it, and storing it can be optimized through a clear, step-by-step process that ends with materials locked in a secure repository. Extendobed’s custom solutions have built-in efficiency to allow each officer to be as thorough and complete as possible.

Several federal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. use Extendobed solutions, including the FBI, U.S. Marshals, and Department of Homeland Security. Knowing that the premier law enforcement agencies of the U.S. government already use Extendobed solutions gives state and municipal agencies the confidence to acquire their own Extendobed units customized to meet their specific needs.

FBI Uses

The FBI uses Extendobeds extensively for a variety of specific needs. Some of these include lockable storage for evidence or weapons, Type 3 explosives boxes in various sizes and configurations, and equipment storage for large and small items such as robots, battering rams, and other specialized supplies and accessories. In addition, FBI agents need mobile command centers with working tables, whiteboards, and radios and other telecom equipment — as well as specialized storage containers for this gear.

The FBI has customized Extendobeds for SUVs and pickup trucks with shells covering the truck beds. Their units include both slideouts and fixed/stationary units with slide-out drawers and worktables.

Application for US Marshals

State and municipal police aren’t the only law enforcement officers dedicated to making the population safe. U.S. Marshals have specialized jobs and specific job requirements that demand specialized equipment.

U.S. Marshals are responsible for the personal safety of federal judges. In addition, they are in charge of the Federal Witness Protection Program. U.S. Marshals are also heavily involved in apprehending fugitives and transporting prisoners. In all these cases — whether protecting criminals, civilians, or other law enforcement personnel — Marshals need custom solutions that ensure the safe transportation of equipment.

U.S. Marshals also use specialized electronic surveillance equipment. This equipment must be stored carefully and transported in a safe manner to ensure that it will be accessible when needed and will work as intended.

Solutions for Homeland Security

Homeland Security officers have increasingly complex and dangerous jobs. Border Patrol officers and Secret Service agents risk their lives every day to ensure U.S. security.

These law enforcement personnel benefit from access to centralized tools and communication hubs. Standardizing how evidence is collected and reported increases efficiency across many federal departments and sets expectations for the quality and organization of each Homeland Security department.

Hazardous waste is an excellent example of specialized equipment in action. Authorized Homeland Security personnel must be trained to handle specific substances using specialized equipment. They must handle, store, and dispose of those substances responsibly, as well as accurately report what was found, handled, and disposed of.

All types of law enforcement personnel benefit from custom mobile storage solutions. Extendobed’s solutions increase efficiency exponentially, while helping to keep professionals and the public safe.

To learn how a custom Extendobed solution can meet your specific needs, email us at: websales@extendobed.com.

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Using the Right Tools Increases Efficiency and Improves Safety

February 19, 2019

By Extendobed

Using the Right Tools Increases Efficiency and Improves Safety

Whether you work in law enforcement, fire safety, emergency services, or another professional services field, certain basic tasks are common before you depart for the day: You must ensure that you have all the tools and materials you will need to perform your job, organized in a safe and efficient manner. However, packing up all these tools and materials in the morning and after each job/call takes additional time and can be an organizational challenge. Having everything you need readily available makes a big difference in successfully performing your job — but you also need a safe and efficient method for transporting and quickly accessing your tools, parts, supplies, and equipment.

Safety Concerns

Safety is essential for workers across all industries, including safe access to equipment and supplies. You don’t want to put your workers in a situation where arriving at every job site causes unnecessary risk. Workers should be able to easily and safely access the tools to do their job, which immediately makes them more productive.

Heavy or awkward equipment can be difficult to get into or out of vehicles, increasing the risk of injury. In addition, equipment or supplies may shift in transit, making it even more difficult to access. Not having easy access as they load or unload their vehicles can easily injure workers’ backs, knees, and shoulders. Such injuries can be costly in terms of workers’ time off the job, potential lost work while they are out, and of course the increase in your workers’ comp insurance rates. Many times, the savings from avoiding even one back injury more than pays for equipment that improves worker safety.

Dangerous equipment and materials, such as firearms and chemicals, need even more careful handling during loading, transport, and unloading. These tools require specialized storage compartments where they can be safely secured, to protect not only the vehicle operator but also bystanders.

Efficiency

In addition to being safer, having well-organized workspaces on fire, police, and service vehicles also increases efficiency. Workers with well-organized service vehicles don’t have to spend time looking for their tools or supplies because they know right where everything is. Equipment that’s organized and easy to access allows service professionals to complete jobs quickly and finish more jobs in a day. It also reduces time spent on the job site or loading supplies, which lowers overall labor costs to make your proposals even more competitive.

Imagine the difference between packing your tools, equipment, and supplies every morning; climbing into the bed of your truck multiple times at each job site; digging through everything to find the right part or piece of equipment; and then repacking your toolbox and having to re-stow all of your parts, supplies, and equipment back into your truck bed after each job — versus being able to flip a latch; pull out a sliding bed; and select the part or tool needed or access heavy equipment such as tanks, air compressors, or generators without ever having to pick them up. Then after you complete your job you return everything to its place, ready to go for the next job without ever having to climb into the bed of your truck again. Multiply this time savings across every vehicle and every job, and you’ll see a significant increase in productivity and profitability.

Extendobed Solutions

Service vehicles are standardized to be useful to many industries — which is great until you have specialized needs for a specific industry. Extendobed creates custom solutions for any industry. Our products maximize your service vehicle’s space to provide efficiency and safety.

Extendobed offers telescoping truck bed extenders and custom enclosures for a variety of use cases. We provide solutions for various law enforcement and fire safety vehicles, as well as solutions for any type of service or work truck. For example:

Law enforcement — Equipment storage with containment caging can keep equipment in place, even while driving over rough terrain or at high speeds — making this kind of enclosure ideal for law enforcement or search and rescue vehicles.
Fire safety — In a fire support vehicle, our well-organized and easily accessible cubbies can store chemicals, equipment, communication equipment, and other supplies. Command center units are available with electronics panels, fold-down work tables, and dry-erase easels.
Government — Municipalities can use custom Extendobed installations to support water, power, or other utility workers with solutions that accommodate their specific needs.
Oil & gas, utilities, power, and pest control — All these industries can benefit from our custom storage and hauling solutions, with equipment mounted on slides and in cubbies designed to meet your specifications — so that everything stays put, even in rough transit, but is easily accessible once on the job site.
Other specialized industries — Commercial door installers can go from manually loading and unloading doors into their service trucks or walk-in trailers to being able to forklift-on and forklift-off their doors.
All industries — For any industry, our bookcase enclosures are designed to keep information, procedures, and forms in sensible order, with a place for everything.

Regardless of the industry, Extendobed’s installations keep tools, equipment, and supplies right at workers’ fingertips, maximizing efficiency and ensuring safety. With a wide variety of fixed units and sliding units for easier access, Extendobed’s applications are virtually endless.

The more complex and competitive our professional environments become, the more important it is to have quick, easy, and safe access to well-organized tools, equipment, and supplies — which quickly pays for itself in increased productivity and reduced work injuries. Find out why Extendobed is the best-in-class solution to customize your mobile work space by emailing us at websales@extendobed.com.

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