Loader Training at Mercer Holz: Safety is a Priority!

Every year, our Mercer Holz operation plans and organizes the loading and transport of up to 2,000 block trains with logs and wood chips to our three German mills. The block trains are loaded by a large number of partner freight companies, which requires a high degree of experience in the loading of wagons from the drivers.

Since our own team members can only monitor a small number of loads on-site themselves, Mercer Holz organizes wagon loading training courses; however, this year, we had additional elements to consider when offering this training due to COVID-19 health and safety protocols.

How does it work? The freight companies are informed about loading procedures, technical details of the wagons, safety-relevant topics, and are trained in the correct way of loading. In addition to the theoretical part, there will be always a practical section in the context of wagon loading at a railway station. 

A second important aspect of the training is the dialogue between the employees of loading companies and Mercer Holz. For this reason, team members from the truck and rail logistics departments (office staff) also take part in the training.

These training events are a great success. Many, especially safety-relevant, risks can be prevented from the outset by this training and the cooperation and partnership with external service partners is strengthened.

At Mercer, the health and safety of our people is always a focus, and this is another example of how we work together on our Road to Zero workplace injuries.