CASE STUDY

How Vermeer Corporation Re-Shaped Safety With AcroMat

Challenge

Vermeer Corporation is a leading manufacturer of industrial and agricultural equipment. At the company's global headquarters in Pella, Iowa, where 2,400 employees operate across 7 plants, they were dealing with a problem.

Their anti-fatigue mats were breaking down quickly and draining the safety budget, the mats were sliding around and curling upwards – causing dangerous trip hazards – and team members were frustrated from having to "bunch together" rigid standard sizes to try and fit intricate layouts.

EHS Manager Jake Berger and his team decided the status quo was no longer good enough. In the following video, Jake and two operators share how Vermeer solved each of the challenges above with AcroMat's superior-quality, fully customized anti-fatigue mats.

We've got enough data at this point to where we can say, ‘This is a trusted mat. It's a trusted company.’ When we need new mats, we’re only thinking of one company. That’s AcroMat.

– Jake Berger, ASP | EHS Manager

Solution

Key Results:

$1,000+ in free sample mats to keep, put to the test, and evaluate comfort
Lifetime Performance Warranty protecting against constant re-purchases
Mats guaranteed to never curl, eliminating dangerous trip hazards
Mats guaranteed to never lose cushion, supporting MSD injury prevention
Custom shapes eliminated "bunching up" of mats, ensures consistent surfaces
Developed a plant-wide standard streamlining mat buying process
Improvements to employee morale and productivity

Beginning With a Free Trial

Vermeer's previous approach was described as a "free for all," where different areas and departments shopped for themselves. This led to random, box-store mats filling their workspaces. The mats were breaking down in a matter of months, borders were curling and creating trip hazards, and employees were pushing the mats to the side to avoid using them all together.

"We spent a lot of time documenting on safety walks, just noting how many mats were damaged, how many mats were stacked or moving," says Jake. "The mats were causing a hazard and it looked incredibly messy."

His team found AcroMat and put multiple free sample mats to the test. After a short period of time, employees noticed such a stark improvement that they began excitedly "arguing" over who got to use the sample mats each day.

"My pain disappeared on me after being on the mat for a day," says Amanda Toopes, Order Fulfillment II. "It shocked me, because I figured I'd still at least have some pain. The fact that my back wasn't hurting, my feet weren't hurting, that was the biggest thing for me."

Creating a Formal Standard

After Vermeer carefully vetted comfort and durability, they began replacing the low-quality mats with AcroMat 100-1 Series anti-fatigue mats. The molded, closed cell, nitrile rubber material is guaranteed to never curl along the borders, preventing trip hazards, and the mats can be customized to any shape to fit unique layouts. The 100-1 Series is also guaranteed to remain permanently resilient, further supporting ergonomic health.

Vermeer was so confident in the partnership that they developed a standard for AcroMat throughout multiple plants. With a standard, team members know where and how to get new mats, what every mat needs to have to ensure consistent performance and safety (e.g., yellow safety borders on all sides for spatial awareness, and adding Grip-R Non-Slip Coating to every mat to prevent sliding), and safety no longer has to worry about inconsistent performance-related issues like curling borders and rapid aging.

"On the new mats, the grip is fantastic," says Jody Bellon, Machinist II. "It doesn't matter if my feet are wet or if the mats are wet, they don't slide at all."

Before: Vermeer had an array of box-store mats that were breaking down quickly, slippery when wet, and curling along the borders – creating dangerous trip hazards.

After: Vermeer replaced the hazardous mats with AcroMat 100-1 Series mats, which are guaranteed to never curl along the borders, never flatten or lose their ergonomic cushion, and NFSI "High Traction" Certified.

Complete and Long-Term Pain Relief

The ergonomic support has been a huge benefit for Vermeer team members, especially the fact that the medium-soft cushion of the 100-1 Series is guaranteed and warrantied to never diminish.

"You feel like you can walk and work a lot longer," says Jody. "I don't want to be like, cliche, but it's almost like you're walking on like a cloud."

According to Jake, another operator on his team previously had consistent Cortisone shots in his knee to relieve chronic pain. The operators was also scheduled for a serious knee surgery. After working on an AcroMat for several months, the operator no longer needed Cortisone shots and was even able to cancel his surgery all together.

The Real Benefits of Custom Anti-Fatigue Mats

Vermeer's previous providers weren't able to customize their anti-fatigue mats. This led to rectangles and runners being pieced together across multiple facilities. With AcroMat, Vermeer can custom-design their anti-fatigue mats to fit even the most complex layouts.

This includes around lift tables, on intricate steel-grate platforms, and around any obstacles.

"If you have a bunch of mats stacked around each other in one space, they are going to step off the mat and there's going to be more trip hazards, more risk of the mats curling," says Jake. "With AcroMat, I can make it where that team member never has to leave their mat. One continuous mat."

In partnership with AcroMat, Vermeer has reduced spend with mats that last longer and perform better, improved employee engagement and morale with mats team members are excited about, and eliminated critical slip, trip, and fall hazards they had been stuck dealing with for years.

Watch the full story in the video above.