Product Updates

The "Key" Solution to Your Problems...

Posted on October 30, 2013

How many times have you wandered around in an aimless attempt to search for a lost pair of car keys? You are sure you left them on the kitchen counter… Or were they in your bag? It’s something which is a commonplace situation in households up and down the UK; the mystery of missing keys. One must admit they are an easy item to misplace. One minute they are in your hand when you are locking your car or when you lock the front door of your house and then, before you know it, you have put them down somewhere or in something, but you can bet your bottom dollar that you won’t be able to remember where on earth they are. Have you ever been in the irritating situation where you have left the house in the morning and you have unknowingly picked up the wrong set of keys? Perhaps you’ve grabbed the keys for the garden shed instead of those for the front door – which proves to be a huge problem when you try to let yourself in later that day. Wouldn’t it be useful if there was a place...

A "Bumper" Blog

Posted on October 10, 2013

We know the word bumper means something big, enormous, or extraordinarily large. Things are often sold in bumper packs, meaning you get more for your money. What about a bump on the head? Where does that come from? Where did the very clumsy Mr Bump get his name? In a very “countdown” style, here is an origins of words blog, looking at the fun and squidgy term: Bumper. The first use of the word bumper was in the mid seventeenth century as a description of a full glass. In approximately 1670, the term bumper was an adjective for a glass or goblet filled with wine or beer. If you had a full glass of wine or beer, you were likely to be wealthy and living comfortably at this time, possibly giving us the link to something bumper being excessive as we use it today. The use of bumper to denote a glass of beer or wine that was full to the brim is said to have developed into meaning a swelling of some sort in general. The commonly used phrase ...

Never Mind the Bollards

Posted on September 27, 2013

You may have heard the news story about the gentleman who, in order to brighten up his day, decided to climb inside a traffic bollard and then inevitably got stuck inside, resulting in the police being called to help pull the man out of the bollard. After this strange occurrence, we would like to take a closer look at bollards and discover that there is more to the humble bollard than meets the eye. Bollards of all shapes and sizes line our streets up and down the country and have become an overlooked feature of society and of the urban landscape. They are used to separate pathways, divide roads and as traffic calming measures in city centres. But a bollard is not chosen solely because of its purpose, there are many other considerations that concern the urban surroundings which determine why and where a bollard is used. ...

Pal-Disc Pallet Turntable

Posted on July 22, 2013

The Pal-Disc Pallet Turntable is a free-rotating turntable for loads of up to 2,000kg, and has a ramped edge for easy pallet truck loading. The turntable has a wide range of industrial uses including the automotive & engineering industries, animal feeds, grain silos, aggregates and general warehousing. Virtually Maintenance Free One of the most impressive aspects of the turntable is the fact that it is virtually maintenance free. It is suitable for use in 'harsh' environments where there might be high levels of dust and grime – such as the aggregates and animal feed industries. It has a brush strip on the inner age which can prevent some of the worse aspects of a dirty environment. Although the Pal-Disc Pallet Turntable is not specifically designed to be used outdoors, it can and is used by some businesses externally. The manufacturer would however recommend carefully monitoring it and ensuring it is kept well lubricated when used outdoors. It can also be u...

British made Security Cages - Ideal for Gas Cylinders and more

Posted on July 17, 2013

Our security cages are a little reminiscent of what you might find at the 'Guantanamo Bay' detention camp although they are not designed to have quite such a high level of security! The most popular use of our cages is for the safe housing of cylinders and chemicals. Gas cylinders containing inflammable gas are legally required to be kept in well-ventilated areas, preferably outdoors, and on a flat, dry surface. They also have to be kept separate to areas with other uses and stored away from places that are vulnerable to impact hazard. (see Health and Safety Executive website for more details). As a consequence of these safety issues, the security cages are the perfect place to keep gas cylinders. Where are Cylinder Cages used? Businesses or organisations that use a lot of gas cylinders include hospitals, manufacturing companies (especially...

Gas Cylinder Trolleys – Moving and Storing them Safely

Posted on July 17, 2013

See our range of Gas Cylinder Trolleys here This article is aimed at anyone who owns or uses gas cylinders – whether you are self employed or an employer, there is a legal duty to have a safe workplace and to use work equipment safely. This article targets businesses or organisations which use a lot of gas cylinders including hospitals, manufacturing plants (especially welding and engineering), laboratories and caravan parks. In July 2013 three south east firms were fined £685,000 after a plumber died and six other workers were seriously injured after incorrect storage and inadequate risk assessment. The accident happened when a gas cylinder toppled over and set off a chain reaction with other cylinders and the resulting high pressure cylinders were propelled at up to 170mph across the workplace. According to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), the six main ga...

Plastic Chain – Not the Weakest Link!

Posted on June 17, 2013

View our range of plastic chains, posts and bases here The plastic chain provided by The Workplace Depot is pictured here being used to make a temporary walkway at Birmingham airport. The plastic chain (sometimes called garden chain) is made in an injection press that can produce chain in a fully automated way thereby creating a high quality end product. The manufacturing is quicker than some producers who still manually assemble the chain and this also means that our production time on very large orders is much shorter. The chain itself is made from a low density polyethylene which is non-toxic, contains no heavy metal and complies with EU regulations. The manufacturer produces around 3 million metres of chain per year – enough to stretch from London to Rome and back! Usage and characteristics of plastic chain The chain is used for barriers o...

The new Mac Pro - is it Modelled on our Waste Bin?

Posted on June 13, 2013

The wait is over, Apple have unveiled the new Mac Pro. The stunning new design has shocked all Mac Pro users as it has dramatically changed its skin from the beast that was. Whilst the new design does not resemble the previous desktop cheese grater/tower it has left Apple fans wondering if the underlying Apple DNA is the same. Well, you will be glad to know that every inch of this product is Apple. The tubular design is built around Apple's unique unified thermal core. They have put all the individual heatsinks, cooling fans and all internal components onto one, yes one, triangular frame. The extruded aluminium frame functions as one giant heatsink and the cylindrical design effectively creates a wind-tunnel for optimal cooling. Instead of adding more cooling fans, they have engineered a large single fan that pulls the air upward through a vent at the bottom. On the way up, the air absorbs the heat and carries it out of the top vent. But then we noticed that it look...

Trucks and Trolleys Now Guaranteed for 10 Years

Posted on June 13, 2013

Good news for buyers of workplace trucks and trolleys – we are extending our guarantee on the Fetra range of trucks and trolleys from 5 to 10 years. This is valid from today. Steve Miller, Managing Director of The Workplace Depot commented, “Extending the warranty highlights the excellent calibre and durability of our trucks and trolleys. For a product that gets robust and heavy usage in the workplace, quality is very important. Our trolleys are built to last and nothing says this more than a 10 year guarantee.” The reason The Workplace Depot are able to make such a strong guarantee is because Fetra's transport equipment is now manufactured at cutting-edge production facilities and with the most highly efficient equipment. As well as precision manufacturing, products are powder-coated and undergo extensive pre-treatment by shot blasting. This extends the life of the product as well as maintaining a permanent, attractive finish (see pictures below of the advance production facil...

Guide to Putting up a Plastic Chain Garden Fence

Posted on June 11, 2013

Everything you need to make a plastic chain fence can be purchased on this website - see our range of plastic chains and posts. Please note that the following does not apply to freestanding posts. What you will need: Plastic chain – this is sold in 24 metre bags Mounting posts – either a spike or socket version (see our video for details) Plastic chain S-hook - to link the post and the chain together, and/or Rubber connectors - used if you want the chain to be mid-post (also need S-hooks with this option) How many posts and chains will you need? Take measurements and sketch out the area the area, bearing in mind the following:...

Cleaning up Workplace Cable Mess

Posted on May 23, 2013

Cable management is not going to be the highest priority for most people, but there are a few business benefits to keeping cables neat and tidy in the workplace. The most obvious advantage is aesthetic – no one can say that a rats nest of cables hanging off the back of every employees computer plus wires trailing everywhere is an attractive look. An office with tidy desks and a minimalist feel will generally be seen by customers (and staff) as being an efficient working environment and portray a good image of the business. Another advantage of good cable management is safety. A mass of cables bunched up behind desks can be a fire hazard through the generation of heat and the possibility of damage to cables leading to short circuits. Sometime you see power c...

A Disclaimer - Making our Product Descriptions Even More Interesting!

Posted on April 23, 2013

You need to be a very creative person to write about Platform Trucks; they all perform a similar function, have four wheels and are usually blue! So spare a thought for the poor website editors asked to write interesting and informative descriptions on 35 different types of modular trucks. The Workplace Depot also sell 26 very similar 'hand pallet' trucks and 100's of other products in our trucks and trolleys range. So after grinding out descriptions for 10 near identical products, we gave up and decided to commission a group of young (cheap) and enthusiastic 'wordsmiths' (their words not ours) to craft out many fascinating descriptions. Our wordsmiths have all done fabulous jobs but they may on occasion have wandered off into storyville territory and let their imaginations roam. They were also supplied with vast amounts of free fizzy drinks, Kit Kats and M&Ms and and the...