Green Tips Signup
The Toro Company
Bloomington, Minnesota
Since 1914, The Toro Company has created innovative, high-quality
products for the professional and residential turf and landscape markets.
Toro's products are as diverse as its customers. From landscapers and
golf course managers to homeowners, Toro designs and manufactures its
products to satisfy the needs of its customers.
The Company's professional market consists of precision turf equipment and high technology irrigation systems. The residential market consists of walk power mowers, riding mowers and tractors, snow throwers, homeowner-installed irrigation systems, replacement parts and electric home solutions products. The Company's products are sold under the primary brands of Toro®, Lawn-Boy®, Irritrol Systems®, Exmark®, Pope® and Lawn Genie®.
Headquartered in Bloomington, Minnesota, The Toro Company measures success not only in numbers, but also by the satisfaction of its customers, the preservation and beauty of the environment and the growth of its employees. The Company has over 4,900 employees worldwide.
Toro Workman® Utility Vehicle
Toro manufactures its Workman® utility vehicle in Tomah, Wisconsin. The Workman® offers operator comfort, easily accessible controls and a payload capacity of 1,250 pounds. A standard component of the utility vehicle is a molded plastic dump box.
Dump Boxes Shipped on Wood Pallets
Initially, Toro used wood pallets to ship the dump boxes from its supplier to its Tomah, Wisconsin plant. The dump boxes were stacked two high on a one-way, disposable wood pallet. To keep dump boxes from shifting on pallets during shipment, the dump boxes were secured with both stretch wrap and banding.
Reusable Steel Rack Replaces Wood Pallets
With a vision toward the future and the wisdom of the past, Toro designed and implemented reusable steel shipping racks to replace one-time-use wood pallets.
The reusable rack features collapsible side assemblies that allows stacking with or without the dump boxes inside. The stack and nest feature of the rack saves on valuable trailer space for the inbound trip to Tomah and, when empty, the return trip to the supplier.
The dump boxes are locked securely in place using spring loaded plungers on the rack. In addition to wood pallets, the reusable rack system eliminates the use of one-time-use protective packaging material such as stretch wrap and banding.
Why Toro Made the Switch
The Toro Company made the switch to reusable steel racks to improve inbound part quality, reduce freight costs, improve worker safety and minimize part handling labor, reduce part costs, decrease inventory space and reduce waste management costs.
Impacts of Toro's Reusable System
Since Toro implemented its reusable steel rack system in December 2000, no dump boxes have been damaged during shipment or handling. Ergonomics for employees has improved due to reduced part handling. Upon implementation of the reusable racks, Toro's supplier agreed to a 15 percent cost reduction as a result of their newfound efficiencies. The number of dump boxes per trailer have doubled from 22 to 44, which has cut the cost of inbound freight in half. This reduction in the cost of inbound freight more than covers the critical cost of returning empty racks to the supplier.
Toro's Return on Investment
Toro's return on the upfront expenditures for the reusable racks occurred in six months. Since implementation of Toro's reusable steel rack system, Toro has spent less than $100 to repair and maintain the racks.
Environmental Benefits
Annually, Toro's reusable steel rack shipping system eliminates approximately 58 tons of wood pallet waste from entering the waste stream.
For More Information
For more information on The Toro Company's reusable steel rack shipping system, email companyinfo@thetorocompany.com.
Click here to learn more about The Toro Company.
Company Information
|
The Company's professional market consists of precision turf equipment and high technology irrigation systems. The residential market consists of walk power mowers, riding mowers and tractors, snow throwers, homeowner-installed irrigation systems, replacement parts and electric home solutions products. The Company's products are sold under the primary brands of Toro®, Lawn-Boy®, Irritrol Systems®, Exmark®, Pope® and Lawn Genie®.
Headquartered in Bloomington, Minnesota, The Toro Company measures success not only in numbers, but also by the satisfaction of its customers, the preservation and beauty of the environment and the growth of its employees. The Company has over 4,900 employees worldwide.
Toro Workman® Utility Vehicle
Toro manufactures its Workman® utility vehicle in Tomah, Wisconsin. The Workman® offers operator comfort, easily accessible controls and a payload capacity of 1,250 pounds. A standard component of the utility vehicle is a molded plastic dump box.
Dump Boxes Shipped on Wood Pallets
Initially, Toro used wood pallets to ship the dump boxes from its supplier to its Tomah, Wisconsin plant. The dump boxes were stacked two high on a one-way, disposable wood pallet. To keep dump boxes from shifting on pallets during shipment, the dump boxes were secured with both stretch wrap and banding.
Reusable Steel Rack Replaces Wood Pallets
With a vision toward the future and the wisdom of the past, Toro designed and implemented reusable steel shipping racks to replace one-time-use wood pallets.
The reusable rack features collapsible side assemblies that allows stacking with or without the dump boxes inside. The stack and nest feature of the rack saves on valuable trailer space for the inbound trip to Tomah and, when empty, the return trip to the supplier.
The dump boxes are locked securely in place using spring loaded plungers on the rack. In addition to wood pallets, the reusable rack system eliminates the use of one-time-use protective packaging material such as stretch wrap and banding.
Why Toro Made the Switch
The Toro Company made the switch to reusable steel racks to improve inbound part quality, reduce freight costs, improve worker safety and minimize part handling labor, reduce part costs, decrease inventory space and reduce waste management costs.
Impacts of Toro's Reusable System
Since Toro implemented its reusable steel rack system in December 2000, no dump boxes have been damaged during shipment or handling. Ergonomics for employees has improved due to reduced part handling. Upon implementation of the reusable racks, Toro's supplier agreed to a 15 percent cost reduction as a result of their newfound efficiencies. The number of dump boxes per trailer have doubled from 22 to 44, which has cut the cost of inbound freight in half. This reduction in the cost of inbound freight more than covers the critical cost of returning empty racks to the supplier.
Toro's Return on Investment
Toro's return on the upfront expenditures for the reusable racks occurred in six months. Since implementation of Toro's reusable steel rack system, Toro has spent less than $100 to repair and maintain the racks.
Environmental Benefits
Annually, Toro's reusable steel rack shipping system eliminates approximately 58 tons of wood pallet waste from entering the waste stream.
For More Information
For more information on The Toro Company's reusable steel rack shipping system, email companyinfo@thetorocompany.com.
Click here to learn more about The Toro Company.
