World's Fifth-Largest Electronics Component Distributor Protects Products and Staff With Slice Tools

Digi-Key's electronics products are extremely sensitive. Even their packaging has to stay pristine. Andrew Bourne, Digi-Key's manager of operational excellence, employs Slice's limited-blade-depth tools to protect Digi-Key commodities while improving safety for workers.

Like all change, the introduction of Slice® blades met some resistance. The safety blade and different handle shape took some adjustment. Employees' perspectives shifted, says Bourne, after his teams saw the blades in action.

"Once we walked the floor and showed them some of the intended benefits of the new tools and how they were designed with [employees'] health in mind, their acceptance of them changed. It moved from being another 'management trying something new' thing, to a 'they care about our health and safety' thing."

Ergonomics is a key safety initiative at Digi-Key, and the handle shape ended up being a "welcome addition to a task [employees] do thousands of times a day." With no hand strain to worry about, they focus on precision cutting for sensitive products, including circuit board storage. That focus translates to a reduction in the number of cuts employees experience in departments that use Slice cutters.

  • Improved

    Ergonomics and worker safety

  • Protected

    Millions of delicate computer products

  • Reduced

    Number of cuts in departments that use Slice tools