1
Bishamon Industries &:;;;"JJWJI (pronounced Bee-shu-mun), one of seven lucky Japanese gods, OIiginated in India and signifies prosperity. It also happens to be the name of one of the leading producers of material handling equipment nationwide. Whether the success of Bishamon Industries is related to its luchy name or not, President and CEO Wataru Sugiura is sure of one thing: Bishamon s product quality is the best in the industry. Bishamon Industries Corporation sports a 78,OOO-square-foot facility located on eight acres of land in the heart of industrial Ontario. Photo by David Hopley Situated on eight acres of prime industrial land in Ontario, Bishamon sports a 78,000-square-foot facility built according to company specifications and a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility An ini- tial investment of approximately seven million dol- lars, including land, facilities and equipment has been more than worth it, according to Sugiura. The investment has also contributed to the company's superior product quality and success. Originally begun in 1988, Bishamon is owned by a Japanese parent company, Sugiyasu, which was started by Sugiura's late father and is now run by his brother. Bishamon also has a sister company, ECOA Lift Operations, which is located in Florida. All three companies manufacture similar equipment such as hydraulic lift tables, pallet jacks, pneumatic pallet positioners and loading docks - just about any- thing associated with the moving and lifting of mate- rials. Their products are used in just about every type of industry and are sold through distributors. In addition to its nationwide clientele, Bishamon also sells products throughout' Europe and Australia. The company also imports some prod- ucts. from Japan while exporting others. One very popular and unique Bishamon prod- uct, which is often shipped to Australia and Europe, is the EZ-Loader, desigri.ed and patented by Bishamon. Created by Bishamon engineer Dr. Robbie Stone, the EZ-Loader is the answer to back injuries and decreased productivity caused by repet- itive stooping and walking during pallet loading and unloading. Its unique design features no mechanical springs and automatically adjusts, keeping its load at a comfortable working height. By eliminating the need for most bending, stooping, reaching and walking, the time to load normal pallets can be reduced up to 40 percent. The product is in high demand by companies seeking to improve worker productivity and morale, while decreasing fatigue, injuries and Workers Compensation claims. Ergonomics, the human engineering science of developing a safe and effective work environment, is very important to the folks at Bishamon. The EZ- Loader, like all Bishamon products, was specifically designed with ergonomics in mind, according to Sugiura. "Whenever somebody has ergonomic problems, we try to solve them with our equip- ment," he said. Environment is also an important issue within the company, according to Bishamon Operations Manager and Vice President LaCount "LC' Jones. "We're an environmentally friendly company," he said, explaining the plant's state-of-the-art powder coating system, which is "best available control technology" (BACT) for maintaining good air quality Powder coating replaced painting the equipment with old-fashioned liquid water-based paint Not only did the change improve the quality of the product, but it also elim- inated waste water and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) while recycling everything. Bisharnons manufacturing process begins with acquiring raw materials from local vendors and putting them in storage or in the machine department, which includes CNC machine and drilling centers. In the production area, materials are welded through MIG welding, semiautomatic welding or even by welding robots. After welding. is completed, the product is hung on a
